Dawning
by CelestialFan2010
Summary: As Shepard and her crew continue to pursue Saren, things become more complex when Shepard and Garrus begin fall for each other. Will they admit their feelings for another before it's too late? Pre-Noveria to Sovereign's end.
1. Pre Noveria

**Dawning**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. Mass Effect and all its characters belong to BioWare.**

Author's note: Hello! I first must apologize for not updating The Tempest in a while, I've been busy and having MAJOR writer's block. I'm sorry.

Anyway, my first Mass Effect fan-fic. : )

Enjoy!

**I**

_Sometimes Garrus couldn't stand his boss Executor Pallin. Heck, sometimes he couldn't stand working for C-sec._

_"Saren's hiding something," he said to Pallin. "Give me more time. Stall them."_

_The look on Pallin's face told Garrus that his boss thought he was crazy to ask such a request._

_"Stall the Council?" Pallin shook his head. "Don't be ridiculous. You're investigation is over Garrus." Then he departed, denying Garrus any chance to persuade his boss to give him more time._

_Garrus clenched his talons into fists, but calmed down when he saw three humans coming up the stairs. His eyes examined each one._

_One was a tall male with a sturdy build. He had brown eyes and dark black hair. The other was a human female with black hair that was put up into a ponytail. She had the same colored eyes. Garrus thought they all looked the same except some different faces features. However, the other human female that lead the group had short black hair that went down to her shoulders. Her eyes were a beautiful blue, darker than the blue color of the Citadel's artificial sky. The features of her face were delicate and relaxed, yet had a serious tone to them. Quite possibly, she was the most beautiful being he had ever seen._

_Garrus shook his head and walked up to her to introduce himself._

_"Commander Shepard. Garrus Vakarian. I was the officer in charge of the C-sec investigation into Saren."_

_Shepard noticed fierce determination in the tone of his voice. "Sound like you really want to bring him down."_

_"I don't trust him. Something about him rubs me the wrong way. But he's a Spectre. Everything he touches is classified. I couldn't find any hard evidence."_

_"I think the Council is ready for us, Commander," the male human said._

_Garrus held back a glare toward the male human. Instead, he simply smiled at Shepard. "Well, good luck Shepard. Maybe they'll listen to you."_

_She smiled back at him. "Thanks."_

_Garrus decided to continue his investigation, despite what the Executor said. He was determined to prove that Saren was up to something illegal or, at least, some action that meant bad news. When he began to walk to the elevator that led down to the Presidium, he accidentally bumped into the Commander. Time slowed down for him. He look down at her while she looked at him, their gazes meeting one another._

Garrus returned to the present when he felt something touch his leg followed by his name begin called. He also jerked up, which was a bad idea. When he did, he hit his head on the Mako's underside where he had been working before he started daydreaming about his meeting with the Commander.

Elena jerked her hand away and gasped when she heard Garrus bang his head. She lied all the way until she was able to see the bottom of the Mako. "Are you all right?" She got back up when Garrus slid out from under the vehicle. She had to giggle when she saw him rubbing his head. "I'm so sorry, Garrus, I didn't know you were so immersed in your work. I probably should've given you a heads up or something."

"Yeah. You could say that," he said. Then he gave a confused look. "Heads up?"

She laughed again."It's a human expression."

"I see."

"Here, let me see." She gently took hold of his hand and removed it from his head.

Garrus wasn't quite sure what he was going to do. She hadn't done something like this before. As her hand stroked his head to examine the very insignificant injure he received, he realized she was getting closer and closer to him. When she eventually halted, her body was on top of his, he took a deep breath. Her sweet fragrance made him dizzy and lose his focus for a quick second. The engineering and storage area was not very noisy, he hoped that no one, especially her, could hear his racing heart. He was knocked back into reality when he heard her say his name.

"Garrus? Garrus? Are you okay? Should I get Dr. Chakwas?" she asked.

He slowly shook his head. "No. I'm fine." Then he noticed her cheeks turning red when he smiled at her. "Are you feeling well, Commander?"

She turned her gaze away to try to calm down and regain her bearings. "Yeah. I'm fine."

"Very well. Did you need something?"

"Yes. I came down here to inform you that I'll be taking you and Ash with me on the mission to Noveria. We'll be arriving in less than an hour, so gear up ASAP."

He nodded. "Yes ma'am."

She smiled and then she made her way over to Chief Williams.


	2. Port Hanshan

**II**

After Elena informed Ashley and Garrus, she geared up into her Colossus armor. Once fully dressed, she held up her hands that were covered up with the red fabric of the Colossus armor and looked at them. Then, slowly, her thoughts drifted to Garrus. She didn't know why, but there was something about him that compelled her to know more about him. He was just...so interesting to her. He was different than other turians she had met in the past. A laugh escaped her lips when she remembered Harkin calling him a hot-head.

She admitted that after talking to Garrus a few times, he was a bit of a hot-head, but she liked that in a man. Plus, he was smart and...

_When the door slid open, Elena heard a woman's voice. It sounded like the woman was terrified by something. Elena saw the woman was surrounded by thugs. The woman had an hour glass figure and short red hair. Elena assumed the frightened woman was Dr. Michel. She also saw Garrus crouching under a counter with a gun clapped in his talons. _

_"I didn't tell anyone. I swear!" Dr. Michel cried._

_"That was smart, Doc," the lead thug said. "Now, if Garrus comes around, you stay smart. Keep your mouth shut or we'll-" He suddenly grabbed Michel when he spotted Shepard glaring at him with a gun in her hand. "Who are you!"_

_"Let her go," Elena commanded._

_While the thug holding the doctor was distracted, Garrus sprung into action. He came out of his hiding spot and shot the thug that held the doctor. Michel moved as far away from the other thugs as possible while Garrus kept his sights on the others. Elena and the rest of her team-Kaiden and Wrex- eagerly joined the fight._

_Elena hid behind the counter and awaited for one thug to stop firing. As soon as he came out of hiding, Kaiden used his biotics to throw the thug into the air. Wrex finished him on with a few shotgun rounds. Elena crouched to the other side of the counter until she was at the end where Garrus had sprung out. She then stood up and shot a fire containment system that two thugs foolishly stood by. The device exploded, killing the last remaining thugs._

_"All clear," Wrex said._

_"Perfect timing, Shepard," Garrus said when she, Kaiden, and Wrex joined them. "Gave me a clear shot at that bastard."_

_"What were you thinking?" she asked urgently. "You could've hit the hostage!"_

_He lowered his head, suddenly thinking about the consequences of not thinking before acting. "There wasn't time to think! I just reacted. I didn't mean to--Dr. Michel? Are you hurt?"_

_"No. I'm okay. Thanks to you. All of you." _

She shook her head.

_He is such a sweetie too, _she thought. She giggled when she whispered the phrase out loud. She felt like a young school girl in love. After a moment of silence to compose herself and get her game face on, she closed her hands into fists and headed up to the cockpit.

* * *

"Approach Control, this is the SSV _Normandy. _Requesting a vector and berth," Joker said.

"_Normandy, _your arrival was not scheduled. Our defense grid is armed and tracking you. State your business," Approach Control said.

Joker rolled his eyes. "Citadel business. We've got a Council Spectre aboard."

"Landing access granted, _Normandy_."

To Elena, the voice on the other side of the comm. seem annoyed. She snickered quietly. _Oh this is going to be a fun place, _she thought sarcastically.

"Be advised. We will be confirming identification on arrival. If conformation cannot be established, your vessel will be impounded."

"What a fun bunch. I think I'll take my next leave here," Joker said to the Commander who simply smiled at him while shaking her head.

As she walked to the _Normandy's _airlock, she saw her team walking up to her. Ashley was in her Phoenix armor that she had recently upgraded to a heavy set of Phoenix armor the last time they had visited the Citadel. But Elena was surprised to see Garrus in a turian version of her Colossus armor. When she saw him, she simply smiled and chuckled quietly. She let Ashley walk into the airlock first.

She playfully hit Garrus' arm as he walked by her. The hit caught him by surprise.

"What did I do, Commander?" he asked worried, trying to think of what he did wrong.

"You copy cat," she said.

"Huh?"

She presented her figure to him in order to show him the type of armor she was wearing.

A laugh escaped him. "So it would seem. Do you want me to change?"

She shook her head. "No. I'm just messing with you."

And with that, she walked into the airlock with Garrus trailing behind her.

When the airlock's door shut, the internal air pressure was stabilized with the outside environment. Once completed, the door opened with a hiss, which let in a cold stream of wind and snow.

"I'm not usually a big fan of the cold," Ashley said.

"Neither are turians," Garrus said. "The sooner we get off this frozen planet the better."

_Freezing cold with a bunch of snobby business individuals...oh yeah this is going to enjoyable, _Elena thought.

The 'fun' began when they were stopped by three officers that stood a few feet from the door into the docking building. One was a turian with no markings on his brown-goldish face. The other two were women. Both of them had a thin petite build. The first woman officer had black hair that was put up into a bun. The other had short blonde hair that went down past her ears.

"That's close enough," the lead woman officer said.

"Is there a problem, Officer?" Elena asked.

The blonde officer glared at her. "You better hope there isn't."

_Well isn't she charming, _Elena thought sarcastically.

"This is an unscheduled arrival," the lead officer said. "I need your credentials."

"You first," Elena said in the most respectful way she could.

"We're the law here," the blonde officer said. "Show some respect."

Elena simply gave her a get-on-your-nerve look.

"I'm Captain Maeko Matuso, Elanus Risk Control services."

"I'm a Spectre. My name is Shepard."

The blonde looked at her superior officer with a look of total disbelief. "Load of horse crap, ma'am."

"We will need to confirm that. Also, I must advise you that firearms are not permitted on Noveria. Sgt. Stirling, secure their weapons."

When Stirling took a step forward, Elena, Ashley, and Garrus all took their weapons out and aimed. Stirling and the turian also aimed their weapons. Everything went quiet and at a standstill. Tension was thick and if an individual were to be near the them, he or she could probably feel the vibe between the officers and the soldiers.

"Back away," Ashley hissed. "Nice and slow."

If their arrival was going to be as welcoming as this, then Elena couldn't image what awaited her and her team inside...or on this planet.

"Nobody takes my weapon," Elena declared in a firm voice.

"Charge and lock!" Stirling commanded.

"We're authorized to use lethal force," Matuso said. "You have 'till the count of three to surrender your weapons."

_Oh, this should be interesting, _Ashley thought.

_They were foolish to cross the Commander, _Garrus thought.

All of their blood raced in their veins, pumping adrenaline into their bodies when Matuso began counting.

"One...Two...Thr-"

"Cpt. Matuso! Stand down," a voice over the speaker said. When Matuso relaxed, Elena put her gun down as well as her team and the other two officers. "We confirmed their identities. Spectres are authorized to carry weapons here, Captain."

"You may proceed, Spectre," Matuso said. "I hope the rest of your visit will be less confrontational. Parasini-san will meet you upstairs."

As Elena and her team were walking into the building, Sgt. Stirling added, "Behave yourself."

"She just had to say that, didn't she?" Elena said while heading up a small flight of stairs.

"Just ignore her, Commander," Garrus said.

"You don't have to worry about me," she said, smiling back at him. "But thanks for your concern."

Garrus could feel blood rushing to his cheeks when he saw her beautiful smile. He look around in order to distract himself. Elena simply laughed. Ashley switched her gaze from Shepard to Garrus. She noticed him suddenly acting strange.

_I wonder what's gotten into him, _she thought.

* * *

If Elena wasn't so self-controlled then she would've hit Administrator Anoleis. He was rude to her the moment she walked into his office. He was only useful when he told her where Matriarch Benezia was. By the time she was done talking to him, she left the office empty-handed. She _had _to reach Peak 15 somehow, but without a garage pass, it was impossible. Garrus offered his support by telling her to forget about Anoleis. He told her that she could find someone else who was more than willing to help. And he was right. As they were leaving, Gianna Parasini came through for them, telling Shepard to talk to a man named Lorik Qui'in.

So here she was with her team, taking an elevator ride up to the hotel bar to talk to Lorik Qui'in.

She had to admit that the people on Noveria had too much time on their hands. They had built a bunch of tall windows, which Ashley pondered the use of because all there was to see outside was snow. Fountains and huge black rocks were placed at certain areas in the room. The elevator seemed too fancy. It was pretty much a pattern of elaborate glass and carved stone. However, Elena was grateful that there wasn't any elevator music.

They headed out once the doors opened. Elena stopped in the doorway and scanned the room. She cursed for not asking Parasini what Lorik looked like. She shrugged and walked over to a turian that was sitting alone at a table. She saw him look up at her with a smile.

"Afternoon," he greeted. "Sit down, have a drink. What can I do for you?"

She kindly declined with a hand gesture and a shake of her head. "Are you Lorik Qui'in?"

The turian nodded.

"I heard you might be able to help me."

"You are the Spectre that just arrived, are you not? What could an old turian like me possibly help you with?"

_Damn, word travels fast here, _she thought. "I'm trying to find a way into the garage. I have places to go."

"You need a pass. How fortuitous."

Elena couldn't help but smile at his use of big and unique words. Garrus saw this. A feeling, one he wasn't familiar with, slowly began to emerge inside him.

"I'm the manager of the local Synthetics Insights office. For the moment, at least. Mr. Anoleis closed my office. He claims to be investigating reports of my corruption. The administrator is an interesting man. He has become quite wealthy since he took control of rents."

"By 'rents,' you mean bribes for Anoleis."

"Indeed."

Elena thought she saw a twinkle in his eyes when he said, "Indeed." She held back a small giggle.

Garrus shook with agitation as he tried to figure out why he was feeling this way. He felt fine until he saw the smile on Shepard's face after Qui'in greeted them. Slowly, it began to hit him. He's heard of the emotion before-a feeling a resentment. He'd seen it on the vids too. Was he...jealous? He was knocked out of his thoughts when he heard Shepard chuckle.

"I'll try my best," she said to Qui'in before heading on her way. She turned to her team. "Let's go."

Garrus picked up the pace so that he was close to Shepard. She took notice of the space closing in between them. Since the mission started Garrus had kept a good distance from her, but now he was making her a bit uncomfortable.

"Um...Garrus, is everything all right?"

He shook his head, noticing-with a start-that he was shoulder-to-shoulder with Shepard. He moved away from her a bit to give her some space, but he still remained near her. "I'm sorry, Commander. I-"

She giggled. "It's okay."

Garrus had to smile at how easy and laid back she was.

* * *

Through the glass door, Elena could she two guards-one human and one turian.

_Oh we're going to have some fun with these guys,_ she thought.

"Freeze! Hanshen security. This office is sealed," the woman officer said.

Elena was getting annoyed with all these obstacles that were getting in that way of her mission. No more Mrs. Nice Woman...for now. "What are you going to do about it?"

"You're the Spectre, right? Lorik Qui'in is under investigation."

"Anoleis is paying you to shake this place this down. That's makes you a criminal. I can kill criminals."

The officer raised an eyebrow at her. "You're bluffing."

"Everything the Commander says is true," Garrus warned. "I would step aside if I were you."

"He ain't paying me enough to take on Spectres, Alliance troops, or whatever. Look you pretend you didn't see us, we'll pretend we didn't see you."

The officer walked in the other direction with the turian following. Elena glared. Secretly, the officer smiled maliciously and slowly took out a pistol. She jerked around to shoot Shepard when, suddenly, she was shot in the head. The turian looked to see that Garrus had a pistol in his talons. The barrel of the pistol seemed to glower at the turian ERC officer. Garrus pulled the trigger and shot the turian in the head.

"Nice shot," Shepard said, looking back at him.

"Sometimes you get lucky," he said with a wink.

Elena and Ashley got their weapons and started to flush out and kill any remaining ERC officers. Once the room was clear, they headed up to Qui'in's office to retrieve the evidence. While grabbing the data, she heard Ashley whisper to her.

"Commander, we've got company," she said.

Elena looked up to see Sgt. Stirling standing a few yards away with two ERC guards flanking her sides. "I hope I get to shut her up once and for all," she muttered. She grabbed the data and headed out of the room, but not before telling Garrus and Ashley to keep their guard up and fingers on their triggers.

"I don't think you're supposed to be in here, _Shepard_," Stirling hissed.

"Do you plan on making me leave?" Elena asked.

"Leave? You think I'm going to let you walk out of here. Uh-uh. Anoleis would throw you off world for what you did here, I won't. Do you know what we do to cop killers on my world?"

"You're men are dirty, Sergeant," Garrus snapped back at her. "You're here off-duty, breaking the law for bribe money."

"You want to fight, I'll give you one." She took her shotgun out, aiming it with a grin on her face. "It'll be a real pleasure to shut your ass up."

Stirling snickered while the guards scattered. "You talk the talk. Let's see if you can walk after I break your legs."

"Bring it, bitch."

Ashley and Garrus charged to take on the ERCs, leaving Shepard and Stirling to battle it out. Stirling started the battle by firing her shotgun at Elena who ducked behind a plant. Elena took out a grenade and waited. When the firing stopped, she threw it out. Stirling rolled out of the way when she saw the grenade land a few inches from her. Elena came out from behind the plant, pulling the shotgun's trigger vigorously. Stirling fired back, getting a few direct hits, but none that were fatal. Elena's armor protected her.

Elena backed up and threw another grenade. Stirling evaded it again. When she turned around, Elena hit her with the butt of her shotgun. Stirling lost her grip on her shotgun while falling to the ground. While on the ground, she tried to grab it, but a heavy boot pressed down on her hand. Elena pointed the shotgun's barrel at Stirling's head.

"Surrender?" Elena asked.

"Screw y-" The shotgun round went straight through her head, killing her instantly.

"I offered life," Elena muttered to the dead body. "And you wasted it." She left to join her comrades. By the time she stepped down on the final stair, her team was finished.

"Good work," she said.

They both nodded a thanks. Then they left the office to give Qui'in his evidence and the garage pass they needed to reach Peak 15.

* * *

Things never seem to go as planned. Elena was originally planning to go to Qui'in, make the exchange, and be on her way. But things got complicated when she ran into Gianna Parasini. She had told her to meet her in the hotel bar before talking to Qui'in.

"It's never easy, is it?" Elena muttered while they were in the elevator.

"Something tells me it won't get any easier once we reach Peak 15," Ashley said.

"I don't doubt it."

Once they arrived, Elena saw Gianna standing by a tall table on the other side of the room. They made their way over to her.

"You wanted me to come talk to you first," Elena said to get her attention.

Gianna nodded. "Allow me to reintroduce myself. Parasini, Noveria Internal Affairs."

"Why is an Internal Affairs agent here?"

"The Executive Board knows about Anoleis' corruption. I've been undercover for sixth months. I want you to convince Qui'in to testify before the Board. With his evidence, this planet can run profitably again."

"I thought corruption was the rule on Noveria."

"The rule is 'don't rock the boat.' Self-interest is tolerated if it doesn't interfere with business. Anoleis is driving costumers away."

"But can't you just take his records since you work for him?"

Parasini chuckled which-to Elena-sounded like one that replaced the words, 'Are you stupid?' "He's a crook, not a moron. He doesn't keep logs on his computer saying, 'This month I stole three million credits.' Qui'in's testimony and records are everything I need to prove Anoleis's guilt in one package."

Elena lowered her head with a smirk on her face. Then she began to laugh.

Parasini scowled at her. "What is so funny?"

Elena stopped laughing while looking up at her, the smirk turned into a fierce stare. She stabbed her finger at her Parasini. "Look, if you want my help, let's get one thing straight here. If I'm going to do this for you then don't be a smartass and use that kind of sarcasm with me. I could've easily walked up to Qui'in and did our little exchange, not even considering your request to talk to you. But I didn't, did I? I did as you requested and came to you first. Now if we're going to have a problem then I'll walk away right now. Get rid of that smartass tone of yours now!"

For a long minute, the tension was think. The only noise that filled the space between Elena and Parasini was the music. Elena broke the ice that 'formed' when she took a deep breath and said, "I need Qui'in's garage pass to complete my mission."

Still considering Elena's warning, Parasini said, "You help with my investigation, I'll provide whatever you need. Favor for a favor."

"Anoleis is dirty," Garrus said. "It might be best to help her."

"Look, Shepard. I don't like this either. You Spectres play fast and loose with the law. That's bad for business."

Elena examined every piece of information before answering her. "All right," she groaned. "I'll talk to Qui'in and see if I can convince him."

"Thank you," Parasini said with a hopeful smile on her light brown colored face. "You know where I work. Come talk to me once you know if he'll play ball."

Elena sighed. Garrus noticed a bit of despair in her sigh. He suspected she was worried about talking to Qui'in regarding his evidence and the Internal Affairs agent. He was suddenly struck with a mixture of emotions that he didn't want to be feeling right now.

Elena, along with her team, walked over to Qui'in's table. She saw that same smile on his face when he looked up at her.

"Always a pleasure, Spectre. Any news on that matter I asked you to look into?"

"I finished the job, but an Internal Affairs agent contacted me. She wants you to testify against Anoleis."

The smile on Qui'in's face disappeared. "Now that you have my property, you want to dictate how I use it? I have no interest in a public spectacle."

Garrus was about to say something, despite the emotions of unnecessary anger and resentment toward Qui'in, when he noticed Shepard. He thought she would cringe away or something, but her beautiful figure stood straight and tall. Her shoulders were back proudly. And with a calm, study voice she said, "Everyone on this station is chafing under Anoleis' extortion. You might end up a hero."

Qui'in sighed. "My employers relay on the good will of the Executive Board to work here."

Elena was cut off by Garrus. "The Executive Board is already investigating Anoleis. They'll be more angry at him than at you."

"All right. It is obvious I cannot persuade you. Very well. I will testify. Make whatever arrangements with your contact, I will wait here."

Without another word, Elena smiled and bowed her head. Then she turned around to head to the elevator. When they were all in, she peeked back at Garrus. He saw her gaze as well as the smile he always loved to see on her face.

"Thanks," she said.

He bowed his head.

* * *

After convincing Qui'in to testify, Elena returned to the administrator's office to inform Parasini who took the evidence, gave Elena a garage pass, and then arrested Anoleis. For Elena and Parasini, it was gratifying to see the corrupted rude bastard being taken away to a prison somewhere. Elena felt like a heavy weight had been lifted off her shoulders once they reached the garage. She showed the pass to the officer that was guarding the entrance. Unfortunately, when they entered, they were ambushed by a group of geth.

"I'd say these are what the Matriarch had in the crates," Garrus said while shooting at a geth destroyer.

"Bring it on!" Ashley shouted, firing at the other geth destroyer.

Elena killed a geth stalker when it foolishly landed in front of her. It only took them about a minute to take care of the other geth destroyer and stalker. Once finished, they walked toward the Mako that was parked at the other end of the garage. When they got in: Garrus took the wheel, Ashley took the turret, and Shepard took control of the cannon. He pushed on the gas pedal and there were off to Peak 15.


	3. Peak 15

**III**

The drive to Peak 15 was very scenic...and dangerous. The geth troopers, armatures, and turrets made it hard to admire the snowy mountains. When the fighting came to halt, Elena looked through the scope and observed the mountains. She wished that it wasn't cloudy and so snowy that it made the look of the outside almost foggy. She really admired snow and the effect it left behind when the sun was shining. The light would cause the snow to glimmer like tiny crystals. She sighed as the thought entered her mind.

Eventually, they reached Peak 15. A wrecked vehicle that was on fire blocked the way into the garage. Garrus spotted a door that lead into the building and told Shepard.

"Good work. Put your helmets on and gear up," she ordered.

They all put on their helmets and got out of the Mako. Once they were in, the interior garage door opened, revealing geth juggernauts, geth repair drones, and krogan who were waiting for them. Elena, Garrus, and Ashley ducked behind cover before engaging them. Garrus switched his assault rifle with his sniper. Ashley activated a carnage round and fired it at the destroyer, which crashed into a pole that was behind it. Elena fired at the repair drones to ensure that the fight with the geth juggernauts wouldn't last longer than need be.

"Bring it you flashlight-headed freaks," Ashley taunted.

Elena giggled at Ashley's insult. _She's just getting started. _Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a krogan on the level above them. She turned on her comm. "Garrus. Krogan on the upper level."

He nodded his head and aimed his sniper at the unsuspecting krogan's head. He pulled the trigger and was rewarded with a dead krogan falling to the floor. He smiled and returned his attention back to the fight that was taking place in front of him.

Elena fired her assault rifle at two krogan that were going up a small flight of steps. When the one died in front of it, it came charging at her. She backed up, switching her assault rifle for her shotgun. She activated the carnage round and fired it at the krogan. It was sent flying back a few feet and then it skid as it made contact with solid ground.

An announcement was heard over the comm. when the battle ended. "User Alert. All Peak 15 facilities have been severely damaged."

"Great," Elena muttered. "Knowing our luck, we'll have to repair some things before we do anything else."

They walked through a tiny entryway with two turrets facing the door that lead to the other room.

"Why are the turrets facing the wrong way?" Garrus wondered.

"They want keep their people in as much as they want to keep others out," Ashley said.

They took an elevator up when they reached the other room. Once at the top, the doors opened to a snowy hallway. On the other side of the hallway's door was another snowy room. Elena assumed it was some kind of lobby, except the chairs and tables were turned on their sides and there were geth. Quickly, she ordered her troops to scatter in order to cover more ground and to flush out any geth that were hiding.

Elena threw a grenade, which drew out a geth trooper. She fired three rounds to kill it. Then she switched to her pistol to kill another geth trooper. Ashley hit a geth with the butt of her shotgun and then fired a round into its head. Garrus took down a geth trooper that was sneaking above a small flight of stairs. Then...all went quiet.

Elena's heart raced in her chest. Once it came to being on the battlefield, she didn't enjoy the quiet.

"Defensive formation," she ordered when she heard noise and she saw movement.

They now stood back-to-back. An intense creaking sound put all of them on edge.

"What was that?" Garrus asked.

"Animals? Wind?" Ashley wondered. "This place is in bad shape."

Elena couldn't agree with her more. Suddenly, small green creatures charged at them. They spotted the creatures and open fired. Then huge bug like creatures attacked them. One got dangerously close to Elena. It shrieked at her before hurling one of its elongated sharp-pointed tentacles at her. It managed to graze her side. She grunted in pain. Then it hit her, knocking her to the ground. It raised its tentacle for a fatal blow, but a round from Garrus' assault rifle pierced its head. It collapsed it front of her.

She sighed with relief while placing her hand over her injured side. Garrus walked over to her.

"Shepard, are you all right?" he asked.

She moaned. "I'll live."

"Let me patch that up for you." He took her hand and guided her over to a wall while Ashley swept the room with her shotgun. Then he gently set her down. He began to apply the med-gel.

For such a well-built turian, he had a gentle touch as he worked on her. He made sure all the exposed areas were covered. While he did, Elena examined every feature of his face. She had the desire to reach out and touch his metallic skinned cheek while stroking his blue markings. His blue was the same color as her eyes. When he was done and looked up, she locked onto his eyes. The blood immediately flowed to her cheeks, making her blush when he looked deep into her eyes.

_Oh crap, _she thought. _I hope he isn't seeing this._

Garrus could not help himself. Her glimmering blue eyes were the most beautiful eyes he had ever seen. He convinced himself that none of the females he'd seen over the years could compare to Shepard. He liked her easy-going personality when she wasn't kicking ass on the front lines. As he stared at her, the desire to stroke her delicate cheek grew. He wished he could play with her soft black hair.

Ashley's question stopped their trance. "What the heck were those things?"

"I'm not sure," Elena said. "Maybe we can find somebody here who knows."

"That is, if we can find someone who actually survived in these type of conditions," Garrus said.

"Good point."

Garrus offered to help her up. She smiled and grabbed his talon. Then he pulled her up. She picked up her weapon and gripped it tightly.

"Let's move."

* * *

They proceeded to the main core of the station. The V.I. was offline so Elena went into the room that contained the V.I.'s memory core. She had proceeded down into the core so that she could get the V.I. back online. After successfully transferring the core's modules in the correct place, she was able to get it back online. The V.I. had introduced herself as Mira. Elena asked what was going on. Mira explained-at least the information that was allowed to Elena-about the breach of safety protocols and loose containments. Also, the main core was disabled and needed a manual restart. The tram way system was inoperable and the landline connection were disabled. She also told Elena that Matriarch Benezia was in the hot labs, which was located somewhere at Rift Station.

With no more questions to ask Mira, Elena and her team began to make the necessary repairs in order to get to Rift Station.

Of course, they ran into opposition in each area. When they went to repair the landlines, they encountered the strange alien bugs. The small green aliens charged at them, exploding if they got too close and came in contact. The bigger bugs that were brown either charged or launched green acid at them from their maws.

_That won't settle well with our armor, _Elena thought.

In the main reactor room, they encountered geth, which prolonged the task to reach the reactor.

Eventually, they finished the repairs and headed to the tram station. Elena wasn't quite sure why, but the empty tram lobby made shivers go up her spine. The desolation of the place was eerie to her. They all got into the tram with Elena pressing the button to start it.

"Departing Central Station. Destination Rift Station," said Mira.

* * *

"Now arriving at Rift Station, Binary Helix research facility."

The tram slowed to a stop as it reached Rift Station's tram lobby. Once it came to a full stop, the doors opened.

"Weapons ready," Elena whispered. With all that had happened since they reached Peak 15, she wasn't going to take her chances. Like Central Station's tram lobby, the area was devoid of life and quiet...maybe too quiet for comfort. Elena crept out of the tram with Garrus and Ashley watching her back.

They swept the entire lobby with their weapons while keeping their eyes and ears open. They never encountered any enemies of any type when they exited the lobby and the station's first main level room. Once inside, there were two doors. On the right, the red knob indicated that the door was locked. So they chose the other doorway. An elevator awaited for them on the other side. Once inside the elevator, it took them up.

When the elevator's doors opened, Elena saw three figures aiming their weapons at them. She sighed with relief, thankful to finally see some friendly individuals.

"Stand down," she commanded.

The human that had a bald head with an well-built upper body and light brown skin ordered the same with his troops. Elena approached him. He held his hand up apologetically.

"Sorry. We couldn't be sure what was on the tram." he said.

Elena shrugged. "I'd only be upset if they fired."

"Even hopped up on stems, my people know the rule. Two legs good, four legs bad. Look you're human enough that I won't shoot. I'd like to know who you are."

"My name is Shepard. I'm a Spectre. And you are?"

"I'm Captain Ventralis."

"What happened here?"

"The aliens overran the hot labs last week. Only Han Olar got out and he ain't all there anymore. First we knew, the bastards were climbing into my command post. We had a lot more staff then."

"You were taken by surprise and had civilians to protect. You did good, Captain."

Elena noticed the captain's shoulders slump down. She knew the feeling, losing people under your watch, or worse, under your command was a terrible thing to feel and know.

"Yeah. Sure as hell don't feel like it. The Board sent in a asari to clean up the mess. She went to the hot labs yesterday. We haven't heard from her since."

They were all shocked, but satisfied to know that the matriarch was there after all.

"Benezia. Is she still over there?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. I don't see what one person could do. There is an emergency elevator by the trams." He took a step forward and handed Elena a small, rectangular card. "This card will let you activate it. It can take you down to the hot labs. Oh, and if need any first aid, Dr. Cohen's downstairs in the med bay."

"Thank you." She turned to her team. "Let's go."

Suddenly, they all heard the protesting groan of the ducts and the shriek of the familiar hostile aliens.

"Hell! Man the perimeter," Ventralis commanded.

Elena, Garrus, and Ashley took out their weapons and got behind the crates. Then the aliens burst out and attacked. They all fried upon them, ending the fight within a few seconds. Elena stepped out into the open when the coast was clear, putting her gun back on the magnets on her armor's back. Garrus and Ashley followed suit.

Ventralis sighed. "Thanks for your help. A few hours, a group comes up from the tram tunnel. It's better since we locked down the elevator."

Elena looked down at the lifeless corpse of the unknown alien. "Do they always attack here? It's an obvious killzone."

"The only other option is over the mountains and down through the ducts. They would freeze just like everyone else. I don't know why they keep throwing themselves at our defenses. Even animals learn not to stick their noses where it hurts."

Elena simply nodded and turned back toward the elevator. It took them back down. Elena headed to the other door when the elevator stopped and opened its doors to let them out. She inserted the card, which summoned the elevator that would take them down to the hot labs. The room they entered had chairs, tables, and cranes on the sides, leaving the middle-a big portion of the middle-wide open. A lone man sat in a chair. She cautiously approached him. As she got closer to him, an unnatural force hit her that made her want to back off.

He slowly looked up at her. "Are you here to secure the situation?"

"Yeah," Elena said. _I guess. _"I'm a Council Spectre. Who are you?"

"I'm Yaroslev Tartakovsky, the operation's director. I would stand up and shake hand, but..." She noted that he seem to trail off to something else in another world before he spoke again. "You must listen. If we can't contain our mistake, they'll drop bombs from the battle station. You understand?"

"I don't understand anything yet. What were you doing here?"

"Binary Helix found an egg. It was on a derelict ship, thousands of years drifting. This was a rachni ship. Inside they find many eggs in cryogenic suspension."

"So they brought it here to wake it up?"

"Binary Helix planned to clone rachni. Mass produce them to create an army."

When Garrus heard this, he clenched his talons while Ashley's heart jumped into her throat. While Tartakovsky kept talking, Elena continued to listen while peeking back at her team. She could see that their bodies were suddenly stiff and tensed up. But she didn't blame them because if they didn't stop Saren from creating an army of rachni, there was chance that he would've succeeded in his plans...whatever they were. Her attention turned back toward the director when he explained the significance of one of the rachni eggs. It turned out that it was a queen.

"This is fascinating, but we don't have time to chat," Elena said.

"These rachni are beyond saving. It is a sad thing, but they must be euthanatized. I am thinking that the neutron purge must be set off."

"How do I set it off?"

He pointed to a room that was a few feet away from where Elena and her team were standing. "The arming controls are nearby. All you do is insert the key. Then I will give Mira destruct c-UH!" Suddenly, one of the rachni's sharp tentacles ferociously pierced the director's chest, leaving a gaping bloody hole in the center. The director looked down, horror clear in his exhausted eyes. Then he looked back to see the rachni. It shrieked and then tossed him aside as if he was a rag doll.

Ashley swiftly took out her shotgun and fired. It hit the rachni directly in the head and the mid-section. Elena walked pass the dead rachni. She kneeled down to the director's blood-spattered corpse and searched him for the code. She shortly found it and then headed to the room the director had pointed out not a minute before his death.

* * *

Elena activated Mira's terminal.

"Connecting. I have full access to the facility, and at your disposal," Mira said.

"Activate the neutron purge," Elena commanded.

"I'm sorry, but I can't do that without proper code authorization."

Elena looked at the key and memorized the code. "Code input: 875-020-079. Code Omega local execution."

"Verified. Code Omega execution in 120 seconds." Then she disappeared from the terminal.

She turned to her team. "When we get out there-run-do no walk to the elevator."

"And if rachni or geth get in the way?" Garrus asked.

She got her shotgun out and cocked it back with an devilish smile. "Blow them to hell."

They nodded and got their weapons out. Then they sprinted for the exit. All whole lot of rachni filled the room when they came out. As Elena had instructed, they shot down any rachni that got in the way. As soon as her whole team was secured in the elevator, she smacked the button. The doors closed and took them up. While going back up to the main level, a low thunderous sound followed by a tremor from the purge shook the elevator a bit.

* * *

Elena decided to go back to Ventralis to tell him that his job will be easier since they set off the purge. When they arrived, the place where they found him last time was bare. She looked around to try and find him.

"Captain?" she called out. "Are you here?"

Garrus went up to her and whispered, "Shepard, I don't like this."

She agreed. "Neither do I, Garrus. Believe me. Weapons out. Captain and his team might've retreated to the back area if they were attacked."

"Let's head there then," Ashley said.

Elena nodded. "Chief, take point. Garrus, cover the rear."

"Roger," they said in unison.

They took out their weapons and advanced to the back area. They were all surprised, yet relived to see the captain and his team when they got there. Elena noticed a peculiar expression on the captain's face. To her, it seem like he was guilty about something.

_Something's wrong, _Elena thought, trying to shake a feeling off.

Her assumption was proven when the captain said, "I'm sorry about this, Shepard. We got orders from Benezia."

All their eyes widened in shock and anger.

"You traitor," she hissed under her breath.

"Open fire!" Ventralis ordered.

"Fire!" Elena shouted.

* * *

From then on, Elena and her team fought off ERCs through every hallway and corner they walked into. At this point, Elena was sick and tired of Noveria. In her mind, she vowed to make Benezia _and _Saren pay for making her go through all of this. Still, a part of her felt guilty for what she was forced to do. The ERCs were just doing their job, it wasn't like they freely chose to attack her. Nevertheless, she didn't hold back. She wasn't going to stand-by and have them kill her, she still had a galaxy to save.

Things finally began to settle down as fewer and fewer guards appeared.

Their fighting lead them through many hallways and up stairs. The room where the fighting stopped had an elevator waiting for them at the end of the passage. They entered. It took them down to Rift Station's lower levels. They zigzagged through a room before walking through a narrow passageway. The door opened and, at long last, up a flight of stairs, stood Matriarch Benezia.

Elena took a deep breath and then walked into the door. Garrus and Ashley ever so diligently trailing behind her.

"You do not know the privilege of being a mother," Benezia said. "There is power in creation. To shape a life. Turn in towards happiness or despair. Her children were to be ours to hunt and slave Saren's enemies." Benezia walked away from the tank that held the rachni queen. She now focused her attention on Shepard. "Have you faced an asari commando unit before? Few humans have."

Elena waved the threat off. "You won't look so smug when I pump your skinny ass full of plasma."

Benezia glared at her. "Your confidence is a poor mask for your fear." She then used stasis on Shepard.

_That bitch, _she thought.

Garrus and Ashley quickly took out their weapons (both assault rifles). Garrus walked in front of Shepard while Ashley covered their backs. They aimed their rifles as the commandos as they appeared and attacked them. One of the commandos threw a ball of dark energy at them. Ashley shoved them out of the way. Finally, Elena was free. She took out her shotgun. They fired upon the commandos.

Elena threw a grenade to make them draw back. Garrus used the opportunity to use the damping ability to disable the biotics. Elena fired on the first commando while Ashley fired on the other. With the combined teamwork of one another, they were able to defeat both commandos. But Benezia wasn't finished yet. She summoned more commandos while adding geth to the fray.

"Chief, provide some covering fire," Elena ordered.

"Aye, aye ma'am."

"Garrus, you're with me."

He nodded and followed her to one of the four corners of the room. They hid behind two crates. She looked at him to give an order when she saw a commando charging toward them.

_Oh, you little- _She aimed her weapon and fired. The commando's body tumbled down the steps, landing in front of Garrus.

"Now, before I was so rudely interrupted," she said glaring at the commando's body. "Garrus, sneak up those stairs and do what you do best. Don't worry," she said with a smile when he saw a look of reluctance on his handsome face, "I got your back."

He gazed at her face and smiled. He carefully made his way up the room's second set of stairs while getting his sniper out. Elena kept a careful eye on all sides.

Secretly, Benezia summoned more commandos and geth again.

Garrus sniped a geth sniper when he spotted something red out of the corner of his eye. He looked to see a another geth sniper aim its weapon at Shepard. He jerked up from his position.

"Shepard! Look out," he shouted. He stood in front of her and shot the sniper. He shot its arm off and then at its chest.

Elena looked from behind Garrus to see the dead geth. She sighed. "Thanks."

He peeked back her. "My pleasure."

They smiled at each other. Then Elena simply lowered her head, the smile still plain on her face. "Chief," she said over the comm. "Are you all right?"

"Excellent Commander," she replied.

"Okay. Make sure Benezia doesn't go anywhere, we're coming over there to confront her."

"Got it."

Then the comm. shut off.

* * *

Elena didn't expect questioning Benezia to go so... peculiarly. When she told her to start talking, Benezia gloated about Saren, but it didn't last long. Then she talked about something she called 'indoctrination' and how she tried to resist it, but failed in the end. Only part of her mind was sealed away to make it possible for her to talk to Elena without having the desire to kill her. Benezia told about the horror of indoctrination. Also that no one was themselves when they were around Saren.

Elena asked about Saren's ship Sovereign. Benezia understood her confusion and curiosity. She described how it was nothing like she had ever seen. Strange things happen when someone is on the ship. She then told Elena how Saren sent her to Noveria to find the location of the 'Mu Relay.' Apparently, the rachni had inhabited that area of the galaxy thousands of years ago and they were the ones that found the lost relay.

Benezia had taken the information from the Queen's mind. Elena could hear in Benezia's voice that she _did_ regret her actions. She told the Matriarch that she still has the chance to redeem herself. The asari gave the Commander the coordinates that she had given to Saren before Elena and her team arrived on Noveria.

Unfortunately, Benezia could feel the effects of the indoctrination taking affect on her.

Elena stepped forward, but Garrus blocked her path using his arm. She saw him shake his head. When she looked back at Benezia, she saw she had an malicious, dark look on her face.

"Die!" said the Matriarch.

All of their instincts quickly took over. They took out their weapons and fired at her. After she fell, they went after the two commandos that snuck into the room.

When all was quiet, Elena went back up the stairs to check out the rachni queen. She gently placed her arm on the glass while her eyes examined the queen.

Unbeknownst to her, one of the dead asari commandos began to stand up. Once up on her feet, she walked over to the tank and Shepard. Elena jerked back when one of the queen's tentacles appeared and roared at her. When she backed up, she bumped into the asari commando. Garrus and Ashley ran to aid their commanding officer when they heard the roar. Elena backed up until she was in front of her team. The dead asari opened her eyes and began to speak.

"This one serves as our voice. We cannot sing, not in these low spaces. Your musics are colorless."

"We filled you with enough plasma to pop a tank," Elena said, not fully believing what she was seeing in front of her.

"This vessel is at the edge. Yet she struggles. You cannot see her magnificence. We are breathing on the embers. We are the mother. We sing for those left behind. The children you thought silenced. We are rachni."

Elena walked up to the tank, looking at the queen. "How are you speaking through her?"

"Our kind sing through touchings of thought. We pluck the strings, and the other understands. She is weak to urging. She has colors we have no names for. But she is ending. Her music is bittersweet. It is beautiful."

Elena turned around as the queen continued to speak. She started to become interested in what was happening. She took in every detail as they presented themselves. While doing that, she gazed at her team. Both looked tense, probably because she was close to the rachni queen. After fighting through the rachni to get to this point, they weren't going to let their guard down just because one could talk.

She smiled at how loyal they were. To help them relax a bit, she walked back to them. She looked at the queen when she asked whether Shepard would give her kind a second chance to live on or condemn her to death.

"Commander, I don't trust this thing. We know its kind are killers. The tank is rigged with acid. I recommend using them," Ashley said.

"If you kill her, you consign an entire race to death," Garrus said. "We should let the Citadel Council decide her fate."

"You're companions hear the truth. You have the power to free us, or return our people to the silence of memory.

Elena thought about everyone's words. She understood Ashley's mistrust of the rachni. Then again, she didn't want the death of an _entire _race on her shoulders until the day she died. She silently contemplated before speaking up.

"I won't destroy your entire race," Elena decided. "You'll go free."

"Commander, there is a reason their kind was hunted to extinction. It is better to safe then let a dangerous race loose," Ashley snapped back.

"Chief, are we any better if we kill them?"

"If this had happened on Tokyo, or Armstrong, or on the Citadel, the death toll would be..." she trailed off as she thought about those horrors.

"You will give us a chance to compose anew? We will remember. We will sing of your forgiveness to our children."

Elena went up to the tank's computer console and typed in a few keys. The tank rose while the commando finally was taken over by death. The tank's door opened. Before she left, the rachni queen looked at the commander who in turn looked up at her with a smile and a nod. Then she departed.


	4. Dr Saleon

**IV**

After the debriefing and talking with the Council, Elena went to the Galaxy Map and plotted a course for Virmire. It was going to take a few hours to get there, so she went to her quarters to kill time.

She sat down in the computer chair. Once she was settled in, she opened her journal to see if she had completed all of the side missions that seemed to pop up everywhere she went. As she went through the list, she fiddled with a dog tag that was around her neck. It had belonged to her sister Naomi. Her sister had died while she tried to defend the colonists on Midnoir. A single tear flowed down Elena's cheek. She took a deep breath, wiping another tear away.

She sighed as her fingers stoked the symbol that was indented in the middle of the metal oval. She brought the dog tag to her lips and kissed it.

"I love you, sis. Always and forever," she whispered.

Elena let go of her sister's dog tag as she continued to scan the contexts of her journal. She noticed she had all the missions completed, except one. Garrus' request to help him find Dr. Saleon. She wondered why she missed that one, especially after talking to him about it. The sound of the disappointment in his voice had made her heart sink. But her heart jumped right back up when he told her he had the transponder frequency for Saleon's ship. She smiled and giggled when she remembered his eyes light up when she told him she was going to check it out.

She memorized the coordinates. Then she stood up and walked out of her room. While on her way to the Galaxy Map, she ran into Ashley.

"Oh, Chief, I'm sorry," Elena said.

"It's all right. It was my fault," Williams said, "Actually, I'm sort of glad I ran into you. I wanted to talk to you."

"Uh, okay. What about?"

"Are you and Garrus..."

Elena raised an eyebrow at the Chief. "Are we what?"

"Are you two a 'thing?'"

Elena thought about the question. Part of her wanted to laugh at the Chief because she sounded like a nosy high school student or...a nosy sister. But another part of her wished she had a straight answer. She was unsure whether Garrus and her were a 'thing' at all. He seemed to have a thing for her, but maybe he was just curious about humans in general. She was unsure.

"No."

"My mistake then. It's just that I saw the way he acted strange around you and..."

"We're not a 'thing', Chief."

"Okay."

Elena smiled. "Dismissed, Chief."

Ashley smiled back. "Ma'am."

* * *

When Elena input the coordinates to Dr. Saleon's ship, she went down to Engineering. She saw Garrus by the Mako, as usual. This time, however, he wasn't under the Mako. He was working on the console near the vehicle. She sighed with relief.

_At least, I don't have to worry about hurting him again_, she thought.

She smiled as she walked over to him.

"Hey Garrus," she said.

He turned around to face her. "Commander, what can I do for you?"

"Nothing. I came down here to let you know we're on our way to Saleon's ship." She tried not to laugh when she saw him trying to suppress a smile. She cleared her throat to try and break the ice. "And you requested that I take you."

For a moment, Garrus could not believe that she was actually doing this for him. He waited for a long time after he told her about the salarian. When the waiting took longer than he had anticipated, he had thought that she had forgotten about his request. He wanted to kick himself for thinking such a thing. He looked at her and smiled.

"Thanks, Commander," he said.

She nodded. "Gear up then." She patted his arm when she walked over to Wrex.

* * *

Garrus' heart raced in his chest when he entered Saleon's ship. The reality of it all simply didn't seem real to him. He was knocked out of his thoughts when he heard Shepard speak.

"Stay alert," she said.

They all took out their weapons and walked forward. When the door to the main chamber of the ship opened, they slowly walked into the room. Many crates that were stacked on top of one another were scattered through most of the room, making good hiding places for enemies.

_I don't like this, _Elena thought.

Suddenly, she saw movement to the right. She turned in that direction. A humanoid creature that looked like a Thorian creeper attacked her. She pulled the trigger, putting a shotgun round into its stomach. When it fell, she shot its head to make sure it wouldn't get back up. Garrus and Wrex charged forward.

Lucky for them, they didn't have to fight in the crate maze for long. At the end, there weren't as many crates, only a few parts that were lying around the floor.

Elena heard Garrus making a comment about Saleon, saying that he was doing more than just cloning organs. She couldn't agree more.

When the fighting quieted down, they entered a small corridor with a door on the left and right side as well as at the end of it. The left door was locked, so they tried the right door. It was unlocked. Elena pressed the knob, which opened the door. In the middle of the room stood Dr. Saleon.

"Thank you," he said. "Thank you for saving me from those things."

Garrus glared at the salarian and tightened his grip on his assault rifle. "Commander, that's him. That's Dr. Saleon."

"What? My name is Heart, Dr. Heart, please get me out of here."

Elena's heart was split on this one. "Are you sure it's him?"

"Positive. There is no escape this time, doctor. I would harvest your organs first, but we don't have the time."

"You're crazy," Saleon said. "He's crazy. Please don't let him do this to me." He looked at the Commander for help. He saw a smile on her face, but it was dark.

"Put him out of his misery, so we can get going," she said.

"Gladly. You days of butchering are over, doctor."

"No. Please, please!"

When he ran in the other direction, Garrus aimed his assault rifle. When Saleon's head entered the scope, he pulled the trigger. Saleon's light body flew back into the back wall, painting an area of the wall with his blood.

"Nice shootin', Vakarian," Wrex said. "Not bad for a turian."

Elena looked at Garrus with a smile. He seemed much more relaxed and at ease.

"That was...satisfying," he said.

"Good," Elena said. "Remember that feeling. That's how it should be."

He looked at her. "I will, Commander. Well, I guess we're done here."

She nodded. "Let's go."

* * *

Author's note: Sorry, this chapter is short. I just wanted to do this side quest in story form because it is one of my favorites. Plus, it helps me build up Elena and Garrus' relationship. Anyway, this story is going to continue into Mass Effect 2. It'll be a bit different than the game, due to the fact that Elena and Garrus' relationship will be a bit serious (not _too_ serious) by the time the story makes its transition. Remember to read and review. Thanks!


	5. Virmire

**V**

Elena couldn't be happier with herself. A feeling of euphoria washed through her when she returned to the _Normandy._ Even though Garrus hid his feelings well, she knew that he was extremely content to have finally taken care of Dr. Saleon. She was glad she was able to help him.

While walking to her quarters, she spotted Garrus making his way to the elevator that led down to engineering. Her gaze soon met his. They lingered for awhile until Wrex came up behind Garrus and said, "Get going, Vakarian."

He took one last glance at Shepard. She had her eyes closed and was shaking her head, a smile clear on her face. Then he walked into the elevator with a very irritated krogan behind him.

Once they were both in, Wrex looked at the turian. He shook his head while sighing. "I'm probably going to regret asking this, but are you and Shepard..."

Once Garrus realized where Wrex was going, his heart began to beat at a faster rate. He took a deep breath before speaking. "No. The relationship between the Commander and I is strictly professional."

"Sure it is," Wrex said as he nodded his head.

* * *

Garrus had a hard time concentrating on his work. Shepard's face kept popping up in his mind. He couldn't deny the fact that he really cared about Shepard. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen and worked with. Every day he was thankful to fight at her side. She had awoken things in him that he never knew he had before.

But...he might already be too late. Shepard might be with Lt. Alenko right now. That thought made his heart sink while making his blood boil, but his anger didn't last long. If she decided she wanted to be with another human, he would not blame her. Besides if he truly cared about her, then he would have her back no matter what paths she chose in her life.

The hiss of the elevator's door brought his attention forward. All his depressed emotions and doubt dissolved when he saw Shepard. His heart beat fast when her eyes locked onto his. She smiled and nodded her head at him before walking over to the Alliance requisition officer. At that moment, Garrus' feelings overpowered his instincts. He took a deep breath and went over to her.

When he was close enough, he saw she had an assault rifle in her grip. She held it close to her face as she examined the scope and the range.

"Commander," he said to get her attention.

She put the rifle down to look at him. She smiled.

"Hey Garrus," she said. "Is there something I can do for you?"

"I do have something on my mind that I've been meaning to speak to you about."

"I'm listening."

"Uh, could we discuss this in private?"

She looked at him. Her smile was gone, but her expression was calm and serious. She altered her gaze to the requisition officer, making a gesture with her head to give them some privacy. The officer nodded. He saluted and then left to take care of some of his other duties. Once out of ear shot, she spoke.

"So what's on your mind?" she asked as she continued to look at the weapons.

"Lots of things..."

"Such as?" She picked up a sniper rifle.

The words caught in Garrus' throat when he tried to speak. The sight of Shepard gripping the sniper rifle made his thoughts race. To him, she looked like a deadly, yet elegant predator. Her right hand firmly secured on the sniper's trigger. Her other hand gently cradled the sniper's long barrel. He shook his head to clear it.

"Our mission, Saren, and...you." He wanted to kick himself for blurting out that last one.

Still holding onto the sniper, she lowered it and looked at him. She raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "Me?"

"I..." He knew there was no hiding or turning back now, he had given himself away when he said he had been thinking about her. "Shepard, I think it's time I confess something to you."

She put down a pistol she had picked up. Then she put one arm on the table and leaned on it. "I'm listening."

"This is not easy for me to say, but over time I've come to care for...well...you. My feelings are more than just professional."

Elena couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her fast heart beat pumped blood to her cheeks, turning them into a cherry-red. "Garrus...I don't know what to say."

He lowered his head, believing he made a terrible mistake. He could clearly feel the thickest of the atmosphere building up around him and Shepard. He had the strong desire to take his words back. "I'm sorry. I'm being very unprofessional and foolish. I-"

"Don't be."

His head jerked up. When he saw her face, he saw her rose-colored cheeks and soft smile. He tried to fight back a smile, but he failed.

"Let's talk," she said, smiling and making a head gesture for her to follow her to the elevator. She walked back to the elevator with Garrus following her.

* * *

Ashley watched Shepard and Garrus walk into the elevator together. The last glance they gave each other stuck in her head.

_They are _so_ a thing, _she thought. _This can't be good._ She went back to work, but kept looking back at the elevator. The look Commander had given Garrus kept bugging her. Then she finally decided to turn her attention away from her work and head to the upper deck. She pressed the elevator's call button to bring it down. Soon, the door opened.

Ashley stepped into the elevator and pressed a button to take her to the upper deck. When the door opened again, she turned the corner. She saw Kaidan working on a computer console near the sleeper pods. She made her way over to him.

Kaidan looked up from the console to see Ashley walking toward him.

"Ash?" he said surprised. "I didn't expect to see you up here. You seem to be always busy with-"

"Have you seen the Commander?" she asked.

"Uh, I think I saw the Commander walking to her quarters. Why?"

"Was Garrus with her?"

He nodded. "Yeah. How did you know?"

She shook her head. "This isn't good."

"What are you talking about?"

She looked around to make sure no one was listening. When she was reassured, she moved closer to Kaidan.

"Don't tell anyone I told you this, but I think the Commander and Garrus have the 'hots' for one another."

Kaidan cleared his throat to cover up a chuckle. "Ash, you worry too much about the aliens the Commander brought aboard. If you ask me, I'm glad she did. It has shown how far humanity has come since first contact. I assure you that the Commander and Garrus' relationship is professional."

Ashley lowered her head, thinking about what Kaidan said and, again, the look the Commander and Garrus gave one another before the elevator door closed. She knew that the two liked each other because she had seen the same thing with her sisters. Her thoughts were broken up when Kaidan spoke up.

"Are you okay?"

She simply nodded.

"Look, if you are worried so much, go talk to her. I'm sure she'll listen to anything you have to say."

"I'll...consider it." She smiled at him. "Thanks for listening, Kaidan."

He nodded. "No problem."

She began to walk to Shepard's quarters, but reconsidered and headed back to the elevator.

* * *

While working to take down the AA gun, Kaidan's attention was divided ever since Ashley came up to him and mentioned the Commander and Garrus. He was lucky that he wasn't put in charge of driving the Mako. If he had been, then the ending would not have been pretty. He silently cursed Ashley for enticing his curiosity, especially since all of his focus should be on the mission.

His attention was fiercely brought back due to a sudden jerk. He looked away from the Mako's cannon scope to see the Commander jerking the Mako's wheel.

"Damn these geth!" she cursed. "Tali, Kaidan, take them out!"

"I got one in my sights," Tali said.

"Saren's got to be here considering all the geth we've run into."

"Commander," Kaidan said, spotting the AA gun through the cannon's scope. "I think that's out target."

"It's about time," Tali said. "I think we've killed more geth than the geth on Therum, Feros, and Noveria combined."

Elena laughed. "Maybe."

Tali targeted the geth rocket troopers and fired. Elena stopped the Mako near a small flight of stairs. Then they got out, went up the stairs, and engaged the geth that were guarding the AA gun control console. Kaidan threw two geth troopers off the building by using his biotics. Elena tossed a grenade at a charging geth destroyer, and then activated it. Then Tali shot at it after the grenade detonated. Once all the geth were taken care of, Elena went through a small hallway that lead to the room, which contained the AA gun's controls.

Elena messed around with the console for a few seconds to shut the gun down. She knew she was successful when she heard Joker.

"I'm reading that the grind is down, Commander," he said. "On approach to the salarian base now."

"Roger that, Joker. We'll rendezvous with you there soon," Elena said. She moved onto another console to open the gates in order to continue onward.

"Ready to move, Commander," Kaidan said.

She nodded. "Move out."

The rest of drive was pretty much the same as the drive to AA gun building. They had to get past a number of geth and open another gate to get to the salarian base camp.

As Elena was driving, she heard the static of the comm. before being replaced by Joker's voice.

"Commander, _Normandy's _touched down at the base, but it looks like we're grounded. The salarian captain can explain it to you when you get here."

"Thanks for the update, Joker."

"Looks like we've hit a roadblock," Tali said.

"Nothing's ever simple. Is it?"

* * *

As Elena walked from the Mako to the salarian camp, she observed the scene. She spotted all of her teammates. They were all waiting either for her to give an order or to simply find out what's going to happen next. There were also a small number of salarians that were hard at work. Before focusing her attention on Ashley who was talking to the salarian captain, she took a glance at Garrus.

She scanned his full body, top to bottom. He stood tall and proud. From a distance, he looked relaxed, but she knew that he just as nervous and tense as anybody else on the beach. His gaze seemed to stare beyond the horizon. She giggled while shaking her head. Then she altered her focus to Ashley and the salarian captain.

"So what are we supposed to do now?" she asked.

"Stay put until we come up with a plan," the salarian captain replied.

"Are you in charge here?" Elena asked. "What's the situation?"

"I'm Captain Kirrahe, third infiltration regiment STG. You and your crew have just landed in the middle of a hot zone. Every AA gun within ten miles has been alerted to your presence."

"Well that's just great. What are we supposed to do now?"

"We stay put until the Council sends in the reinforcements we requested."

After Kirrahe said that, there was a moment of awkward silence between Kirrahe, Elena, Kaidan, and Ashley. Elena quietly cursed the Council for not having the decency to _at least _let the captain know Shepard and her crew were coming.

"We are the reinforcements," Kaidan said.

"What?" Kirrahe said. "You're all they sent? I told the Council to send a fleet."

"We couldn't understand your transmission," Elena said. "They sent me to investigate."

"That is a repetition of our task," Kirrahe snapped back. "I lost have my men _investigating_ this place."

"So what have you found?" Kaidan asked.

"Saren's base of operations. He sent up a research facility here, it is crawling with geth and very well fortified."

To Elena, research and Saren in the same sentence did not bode well. "What's he researching?"

"He is using the facility to breed any army of krogan."

"How is that possible?" Wrex said as he walked up to the group.

"Apparently, Saren has found a cure to the genophage."

Elena didn't like that fact that Wrex was involved in the conversation. She knew from talking to Wrex on the _Normandy_ that once it came talking about the krogan and the genophage, he was highly 'sensitive' about the topic.

"The geth are bad enough, but an army of krogan...he'd be almost unstoppable," Elena said.

"Exactly my thoughts," Kirrahe said. "We have to ensure that this facility and its secrets are destroyed."

"Destroyed?" Wrex shook his head. "I don't think so. Our people are dying. This cure can save them."

"If that cure leaves this planet, we risk the potential of the krogan becoming unstoppable" Kirrahe pointed out. "We can't make the same mistake again."

_Uh oh, _Elena thought. _That was not a smart thing to say in front of Wrex._ She became nervous and tense when she saw Wrex slowly approach Kirrahe.

Wrex stabbed his finger at the captain. "We are not a mistake!" Then he walked away.

"Wrex, come back," Elena said.

"Uh, he is he going to be a problem?" Kirrahe asked. "We already have enough angry krogan to deal with."

As much as she wanted to point out that it was Kirrahe's fault for making Wrex upset in the first place, she didn't. "He'll be all right. I'll talk to him."

"I'd appreciate that, Commander. My men and I need to rethink our plan of attack. Could you give us some time?"

She nodded. "Go ahead."

"We won't be long. In the meantime, if you need any supplies you can talk to Commander Rentola. He is in one of the tents nearby."

As Kirrahe walked into the biggest tent on the beach, which was used as the base's main headquarters, Elena turned around to face Kaidan and Ashley.

"Looks like things are in a bit of a mess," Kaidan commented.

"No kidding," Ashley said. "I wouldn't be so worried if it weren't for Wrex, it looks like he's going to blow a gasket."

"Don't worry so much, Ash" Elena said. "I'll speak to him and see if I can calm him down."

"Just be careful, Commander."

"Always, but be ready just in case."

"Got it."

Before she walked over to Wrex, she peeked at Garrus. Normally when they gazed at each other, Garrus had a bashful look on his face. This time, his face expression was serious and edgy. She knew that he wasn't mad at her; he was just worried about her dealing with Wrex. She nodded at him to give some kind of reassurance that everything was going to be fine. She took a deep breath as she made her way over to the upset krogan.

She approached him, but halted when Wrex lifted his shotgun and fired two shots into the air. Then she pushed herself to move forward.

Meanwhile, Garrus carefully watched her. As she moved closer to Wrex, he took his sniper out and held onto it with a tight, yet firm grip. He didn't care if Wrex was a fellow crew member, if he made any attempt to hurt the Commander, he would take him down.

"Wrex?" Elena said.

"This isn't right, Shepard," Wrex said. "If there is cure for the genophage then we can't destroy it."

"I understand you're upset, but we both know that Saren's the enemy here. He's the one you should be angry with."

Wrex walked over to her.

When Garrus saw Wrex approach her, he raised his sniper rifle. Ashley noticed Garrus lift his sniper rifle. She grabbed her pistol and began to lift it when Kaidan stopped her. He shook his head when she looked at him.

"Relax," he simply said.

Both turned their heads to see that Wrex had pointed his shotgun at the Commander.

"Wrex, these krogan are not your people," Elena said. "Their slaves of Saren. Tools. Is that what you want for them?"

Wrex hesitated. He stared her down as if trying to match her words with her intentions.

"Come on, Wrex. You know I wouldn't do this if I knew it wasn't right or there were any other options."

He sighed. "I know. We were tools for the Council once. To thank us for wiping out the rachni, they neutered us all. I doubt Saren will be as generous." He put his shotgun down. "All right, Shepard. You made your point. I don't like this, but trust you enough to follow your lead. Just one thing. When we find Saren, I want his head."

She smiled. "I appreciate what you're doing, Wrex."

"If we're going to do this, then let's go."

She nodded and walked away. She noticed that Garrus gripped his sniper rifle with one talon. She smiled and winked at him. Then she went up to the captain.

"Thank you for speaking with the krogan," he said. "The assault on Saren's base with difficult as it is."

"I assume that means you've come up with a plan," Elena said as Kaidan and Ashley came up behind her.

"Of sorts. We can convert our ship's drive system into a twenty-kiloton ordnance. Crude, but effective."

"Nice," Ashley said. "Drop that nuke from orbit and Saren can kiss his turian ass goodbye."

_No way it's that simple, _Elena thought.

Kirrahe's next statement confirmed her thought. "Unfortunately, the facility is too well-fortified for an orbital drop."

_I knew it, _she thought.

"We need to place the bomb at a precise location."

"Where? And how do we get there?"

"The nuke must be placed at the far side of the facility. Your ship can drop it off. But first we'll need to infiltrate the base, disable the AA guns, and pacify any ground forces."

"We want us to go in on foot?" Kaidan asked, urgency and apprehension in his voice. "We don't have enough troops."

"He's got a point," Elena said. "We won't be able to meet their forces head on."

"You're right," Kirrahe said. "However, I think we can find a way around that. What I'm going to do is divide my men into three teams and hit the front of the facility. While we got the enemy's attention, you can sneak your 'shadow' team in the back."

"It's a good idea, but your men are going to get slaughtered," Elena said, hoping the captain wouldn't take her statement the wrong way. She thought she saw a small, quick smile appear on the captain's face. If there was, then it was swiftly replaced by distress as the captain's broad shoulders slumped.

"We are tougher than we look, Commander. But it's true. I don't expect many of us to make it out alive. And that makes what I'm going to ask even more difficult."

Elena's heart jumped when his eyes met hers. He took a deep breath before speaking again.

"I need one of your men to accompany me. To help coordinate the team."

Elena didn't want to part with one of her teammates. She knew she would constantly worry about them, wondering if they would be okay or not. However, she thought about the sacrifices they all made by joining up with her. They were loyal, and no matter whose command they were under, they would always kick ass. She was proud of all of them and always will be.

She looked deep into the captain's eyes. Commanding officer to commanding officer. "All right. We'll need someone that knows Alliance communication protocols."

Kaidan instantly spoke up. "I volunteer, Commander."

"Hold on, Lt," Ashley said. "The Commander will need you to arm the nuke. I'll go with the salarians."

"With all due respect, Gunnery Chief, it's not your place to decide."

"Why is that whenever someone say "with all due respect" they really want to say "kick my ass?"

Elena really, really didn't want to make this decision, but she had no other choice. "Kaidan, you're with the captain. Keep it simple, understood?"

"Aye, aye, Commander," he replied.

"I will have the ordnance loaded onto the _Normandy _and brief your crew on its detonation sequencing. Do you have any questions before we go, Commander?"

"I'm ready whenever you are, Captain," Elena said.

"Excellent. If you'll excuse me, I need to prepare my men."

Elena turned to her troops.

"Well, this is it," Kaidan said. "Don't do anything foolish while I'm gone, Ash. That goes for you too, Commander."

Both smiled.

"We'll be fine, Lt," Ashley said.

"I know. I just...good luck."

Elena noticed how Kaidan began to trail off. She also noticed the hesitation in his voice and his body language. "Is there something you wanted to say, Kaidan?"

"It's just weird, you know, going under someone else's command. I've got so used to working with you...all of you."

"Don't worry so much. We'll see you on the other side."

"I know, I, ah...I just wanted to say it's been an honor serving with you, Commander."

Elena didn't like this kind of talk at all, but it was hard to avoid. She couldn't deny the danger and significant of this mission. But the way Kaidan and Ashley were talking, they made it sound like this was final. Strangely, that made her more determined to fight harder than she had before and give the both Saren and the geth hell.

"It doesn't matter if we are not in the same unit, we're still a team. Watch each other's backs, keep your eyes open, and fight like I know you can. We'll all come out of this in one piece," Elena said boldly.

He had to smile at how indomitable his commanding officer was. Plus, he had total confidence in the Commander. He didn't doubt her one bit. "You bet, Commander."

* * *

Elena listened to Kirrahe's speech to his men. She was moved with each word. Some it reminded her of how she felt about being a soldier and another parts reminded her of her duty as a commanding officer. His speech caused her to have a mix of emotions. Such feelings were the determination to get the job done right. Other feelings were worry and grief of knowing the consequences of the mission and what would happen if they didn't succeed. She absolutely refused to let this mission fail/

She brought her attention forward when Kirrahe turned to her.

"Good luck, Commander," he said. "I hope we will meet again."

"Same here, Captain," she said. _Same here._


	6. Assault

**VI**

Static filled Elena's ears before being replaced by Kirrahe's voice.

"Comm. check," he said. "Do you read me, Commander?"

"Loud and clear," she said.

"Go. We'll start our push. We'll try to make it to the AA guns, but it might be up to you to finish the job."

"Understood."

"One more thing, Commander, if you happen to find a way to weaken their defenses we sure you use the help."

"We'll keep our eyes peeled." She peeked back at her team-Wrex and Tali. With a smile, she took out her assault rifle and said, "Let's give them hell."

The two smiled back at her and got their weapons out. The assault on Saren's base was set in motion.

* * *

Garrus really wished Shepard had taken him with her. He consistently worried about her since she took Wrex with her. Even if he didn't shoot her, he still did not fully trust the krogan. He hated to admit that he had a hint of anger toward her. All of a sudden, that feeling of anger was blended with different emotions such as trust, irritation, and regret. They all originated when he thought about her and his confess. He trusted her, knowing that she would be cautious, even when Wrex was fighting alongside her.

He was irritated at himself for being so foolish to confess his feelings to her. Regret was blended with his irritation. Perhaps she became uncomfortable and now she was afraid to get near him.

_No, _he thought. _Don't even think about such_ _irrational_ _things. Remember the talk you had with her._

What he talked about with her did help him feel better, but not all the way. He was so caught up in his own mind that he didn't notice Liara approaching him.

"Garrus, are you all right?" she asked.

"Shepard?" he asked turning around. Strangely enough, he was both disappointed and relived to see Liara standing behind him instead of Shepard. "Hi, Liara. Is there something I can do for you?"

"No. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I appreciate your concern, but I'm fine."

"Because you seem, well, sidetracked by something."

"I said I'm fine, Liara!"

The severity in his voice made her cringe back. "I...I'm sorry, Garrus. I didn't mean to-"

"No. I'm the one you should be sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you. It's just that my body and mind haven't been where they should be. For the first time ever, I don't feel like myself."

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

"I don't know if you can."

"There must be _something_ I can do."

Before he spoke, he stopped himself so as not to give himself away like he did when he confessed his feelings to Shepard. "I've been thinking about out our mission and the Commander."

Liara chuckled quietly. "I really believe that you don't have to worry about the Commander or the mission. Just look at the progress we've made so far. I have full faith in the Commander to stop Saren and his geth. However, it is strange you mentioned the Commander. I _have _been noticing that she's been acting strangely."

"How so?" He tried his best not to let his voice or hesitation give him away.

She crossed her arms. "At first, she seemed distracted. Just recently I've noticed that she seems happier about something," she looked at Garrus, "or someone."

"Have any idea who?" he asked. He focused his eyes on the computer console so as to avoid Liara's gaze.

She shook her head. "No." She looked over Garrus, observing the details of his body language. "Do _you_ know who, Garrus?"

He looked up from the console, but didn't look directly at Liara. "No."

She smiled deviously. "Garrus, you know who, don't you."

* * *

"Wrex, cover me!" Elena ordered. "I'm going to take out that satellite link."

"Got it," he said.

Elena sprinted and then dove behind a large boulder. She switched the assault rifle for the sniper. She took a deep breath before coming out of cover and aiming the sniper at the satellite. As soon as she had it in her sights, she pulled the trigger. Then she swiftly ducked back into cover, switching back to the assault rifle.

She came out of cover again when the firing stopped. She sprinted from one large boulder to another, making sure that she wouldn't get caught off guard by a geth trooper. She slowly walked up the ramp. All of a sudden, she saw a krogan charging at her. "Oh shit!" She shot at it, but it kept charging.

When it was only a few inches away from he, it was flown back. She jerked around to see Wrex glowing blue. She smiled and nodded. He respectfully nodded back at her. She heard Kaidan's voice over the comm., but his voice was overwhelmed by the sounds of explosion in the background as well as nearby. She got worried for a moment after that.

Elena and her team crisscrossed through a chain of walkways. At the end of the walkway maze was a circular area with blue shields that were separated by only a few inches. Beyond that area were geth troopers and krogan. They took cover behind the shields and then engaged the enemies. Once all the enemies were dead, they entered through the door, which led to more walkways. Only these walkways went to the right and then straight. A little ways away, there were consoles near three separate doors.

Tali walked toward the console. She holstered her gun to free her hands. Then she began typing on it. "We've got access to the base's security. We should be able to cut the alarms from here. We might even be able to trigger the alarms on the far side of the base. It'll clear out the guards for us, but they might be too much for the salarain teams to handle."

"Just disable the alarms, Tali," Elena said. "I don't want to burden Kaidan and Kirrahe with any more trouble than necessary. Besides, we can handle any guards that are inside."

Tali turned off the alarms. Then she took out her shotgun. They entered the building while keeping their fingers near their guns' triggers. They scooped the area. Elena's shields flickered. Wrex jerked his gun to the shooter and fired. The rifle shot hit a salarian right on the chest.

"A salarian?" Tali said puzzled.

"Capt. Kirrahe did mention that he had some missing men," Elena noted. She jerked around and fired on an incoming geth destroyer.

"These must them." Tali hacked a geth trooper to take care of another geth destroyer that came at them. "But they seem...different somehow."

"They must be indoctrinated. After all, this is Saren's research facility."

They swept the room for enemies, which now included the indoctrinated salarians. When they were done, they passed through a doorway with a bride leading to the other side. They suddenly heard a voice while making their way across. Elena stopped to search for the voice. She saw figures standing in holding cells.

_What the hell is Saren doing here, _she thought.

The far side of bridge led to a room that contained an elevator, but also indoctrinated salarians. Wrex used warp on one to weaken him. Then Tali finished him off with her shotgun. Elena pumped plasma into the second until he fell. After the salarain fell, the comm. came to life with explosions, gunfire, and Kaidan's voice.

"Okay, hold them!" he said. "Fill those holes. Come on, Shepard, make it soon."

_Keep up the pressure, Kaidan, _she thought.

They got into the elevator, which took them up to what appeared to be some kind of lab. A husk stood in a stasis machine. Elena fired on it. That, unfortunately, alerted the krogan scientist and his asari assistant as well as releasing all the husks.

"Damn it!" she cursed.

Elena fired on the husks that came running at them while Tali engaged the asari assistant. Wrex took care of the krogan scientist, which surprised Elena since Wrex had strongly defended his position on not destroying the base and the cure. Once they were finished, they headed out the door. They were back outside, but only for a short time. Tali spotted two geth troopers. She softened them up by using her damping ability. Elena switched her rifle for her pistol and shot the first one in the head. Wrex used throw to knock the second one over the edge.

She had to laugh at that one. "Good one, Wrex."

When they went through the door, they saw an asari crouching under a table.

"Don't shoot!" the asari said, coming out from under the table. "Please, I just want to get out of here before it is too late."

"It's all right, I'm not going to hurt you. Who are you?" Elena asked.

"Rana Thanoptis, neurospecialist, but this job isn't worth dying over. Or worse. You think the indoctrination only affects prisoners? Sooner or later, Saren will want to dissect my brains as well."

Elena became very suspicious, yet confused when she heard that Rana was a _neurospecialist_. She remembered the captain saying that Saren was breeding an army of krogan. Something told her that there was a lot more going on than anyone realized. She voiced only her suspicions about the breeding krogan to Rana. The asari explained the work she and the rest of science team had worked on.

As she explained, Elena noticed that Sovereign, the ship that Matriarch Benezia mentioned on Noveria, came up frequently. If she heard it right, it also appeared that Saren might not _entirely _be running the show. She absorbed every detail she possibly could to try and make sense of it, but she had little success. To her, this seemed like a sickening experiment on innocent beings. That gave her more motivation to destroy the facility and take down Saren.

She returned to the present when Rana said something about helping her and her team gain access to all of Saren's files.

"Are we good? Can I go?" she asked.

"I'm going to blow this place to hell and gone. If you want to make it alive, you better start running."

"What?! You can't...but I'll never..." Rana sprinted out of the room.

"You enjoyed that, didn't you," Tali said.

Elena simply laughed. "Maybe."

They headed out of the room and across a small bridge to yet another elevator. When the elevator door opened, Elena's heart beat fast. The door in front of them would contain all of Saren's files, maybe even his plans on what he has been up to lately. However, when they went through the doorway, all there was in the room was a balcony that was connected to two ramps.

"Look, Commander, it's another beacon. Like the one on Eden Prime," Tali said when they walked down the closest ramp.

Elena carefully approached the beacon's panel. She typed on it a few times and then- the recognizable images flashed through her head. At first it was painful, but then it began to subside and the images were clearer than ever before. She suddenly fell on the floor. She breathed heavily and held her head. She waited until her body and mind relaxed before she got back on her feet.

She stood up and stared at the beacon for a minute. She walked back up the ramp with her team trailing behind her. When she did, she noticed that the empty space beyond the balcony now had some kind of red console near it. The red console grew, turning into some kind of strange figure as Elena and her team got close.

"I get the feeling something bad is about to happen," Wrex said.

"You are not Saren," said the hologram.

"What is that?" Tali wondered. "Some kind of V.I. interface?"

"Rudimentary creatures of blood and flesh. You touched my mind, fumbling in ignorance, incapable of understanding."

"I don't think this is V.I..."

"There is a realm of existence so far beyond your own you cannot even imagine it. I am beyond your comprehension. I am Sovereign!"

The realization hit Elena instantly. "Sovereign isn't just some Reaper ship Saren found. It's a an actual Reaper!"

Elena, Tali, and Wrex couldn't believe what they were seeing and hearing. A real Reaper was actually speaking to them. Elena wasn't surprised that it acted superior to the rest of them as well as putting all organics down. However, she was shocked when it told them that the _Reapers _built the mass relays_ and _the Citadel. Apparently, the Protheans simply used them as well as all organic life after them. A horrific realization hit all of them. They realized that by using the technology the Reapers built, they were set on a path that the Reapers could follow and then-they would all be wiped out when all organic civilization was at its pinnacle.

Elena knew, at that very moment, that she would do whatever it took to stop the Reapers from killing all organic life in the galaxy. "You are even alive. Not really. You're just a machine. And machines can be broken and torn apart."

Even though the Reaper in front of her didn't have eyes, she felt its intense, red glare. "You words are as empty as your future. I am the vanguard your destruction. This exchange is over."

Suddenly, a thunderous explosion broke the windows. Then the comm. came to life.

"Commander?" Joker said. "We've got trouble!"

"Hit me, Joker," Elena said.

"That ship, Sovereign? It's moving. I don't know what you did down there, but that thing just pulled a turn that would shear any of our ships in half. It's coming your way, and it's coming hard! You need to wrap up things in there-fast!"

"This console is disabled," Tali said. "Orders, Commander?"

"We'll head for the breeding facility. Time to blow this pace to hell!"

"Hell yeah," Wrex said.

They all got their weapons out and headed to the breeding facility.


	7. Sacrifice

**VII**

After a long march through numerous walkways, geth, and krogan, Elena and her team finally reached the spot where the nuke was going to be set.

"All right," Joker said. "Nice work. That's one less thing to worry about. Commander, I'm bringing us in. I'll get as close to the sight as I can."

They all kept an eye out for any enemies that might be stupid enough to pop up while listening for the sound of the _Normandy's _powerful engines. Fortunately, no enemies dared stepped out into the open if they had been hiding at all. Elena saw a small black speck high in the sky. Then the small speck quickly grew into the colossal _Normandy_ as it descended downward. Soon enough, Elena saw Ashley and another member of the _Normandy _crew carrying the nuke. At first glance, it didn't look like a bomb, it looked more like an oversized mushroom. But she knew the power that was contained inside it.

Elena followed Ashley and the crewmember to the precise spot where the nuke would be placed. Once it was set down, Ashley opened the comm. to let everyone know the bomb was just about ready.

Static filled Elena's ear. "Commander, do you read me?"

"The nuke is almost ready, lieutenant," Elena responded. "Get to the rendezvous point."

"Negative, Commander. The geth have us pinned down on the AA tower. We've taken heavy casualties. At this rate, we won't be able to make it in time."

"Hold on! We're coming to getcha."

"It's too hot! You can't risk it. We'll hold them off as long as we-"

Ashley noted the concerned look on the Commander's face. "It's okay, Commander. I need a couple of minutes to finish arming the nuke. Go get them and meet me back here."

She nodded. "Up to the AA tower. Move!"

Elena chose to take Wrex and Garrus with her to the AA tower. They had to get pass a krogan warlord and his krogan warriors in order to reach the elevator that would take them up to the tower. After dealing with the krogan, they entered the elevator. When it took them up, they headed out. Unfortunately, they saw a geth ship heading for the area where they had just come from.

_Damn it! _Elena thought. _That's where Ashley is._

Kaidan's voice gave voice to her thoughts. "Chief. We just spotted a geth ship inbound to your location."

"It's already here. It's bleeding geth all over the bomb site," Ashley said.

"Can you hold them off?" Elena asked.

"There's too many! I don't think we can hold them! I'm activating the nuke."

"What the hell do you think you are doing, Chief?"

"Making sure this nuke goes off. No matter what." There was a pause. "It's done, Commander. Get the lieutenant and get the hell out of here."

"Belay that." Kaidan urged. "We can take care of ourselves. Go back and get Williams."

Elena's heart beat faster as a chill went up her spine. The realization that she would have to leave one of her own team members behind to die didn't seem real to her. Suddenly, the memories of Akuze played out in her head. _The night sky was filled with twinkling stars. The base camp was silent with most of the marines asleep. Elena was one of the marines that stayed awake to help patrol the area. All of a sudden, the ground beneath them shook vigorously. Then giant Thresher Maws burst out from under the ground and attacked. The marines that weren't quick enough to get up from their slumber were taken first, screaming as they were dragged to a horrible death under the soil. Elena fired or threw grenades at the Maws that kept on grabbing the marines. The ones that put up a fight were either taken like most or slaughtered by the Maws' claws. The once peaceful night now turned into a night filled with the blood-curdling screams of the marines while their blood painted the dirt._

Elena gasped and regained her focus when she felt something on her shoulder. She looked back to see Garrus. She knew by the look on his face that he understood her struggle.

"We're running out of time," he said softly.

She took a deep breath. "...Alenko, radio Joker and tell him to meet us on the AA tower."

"Yes, Commander, I-I..."

"You know it's the right choice, LT," Ashley said.

"I'm...I'm so sorry, Ash," Elena said. "I had to make a choice."

"I understand, Commander. I don't regret a thing."

Elena stood there in silence for a moment. Then she tightened her hands into fists. _Saren's going to regret all he's done. _She boldly turned to Garrus and Wrex. "Let's go. I refuse to let Ashley's sacrifice go to waste."

Elena fired her assault rifle at a geth that foolishly had its back turned to her. Then she struck another one before putting rounds through its flashlight head. Garrus sniped geth shock troopers that were near a fuel tank. Wrex activated his barrier before engaging a geth destroyer with his shotgun. When the fighting slowed down, Elena was almost hit by a biotic attack. She jerked her gun around to find the being responsible. The being responsible was Saren.

He flew down toward them on a hover board while firing biotic attacks at Elena and her team. They withdrew to find some cover. While running back, Elena returned fire at Saren. She leapt when one of his biotic attacks was close to hitting her. Then she slammed her back to a pile of fortified crates that provided cover from Saren.

Saren leapt off his hover board to engage her directly who soon came out of cover and shot him a few times.

"Damn!" she cursed when she saw that her fire was deflected by his shield.

"This has been an impressive diversion, Shepard. The geth were utterly convinced the salarians were the real threat. Of course, it was all for not. I can't let you disrupt what I have accomplished here. You can't possibly understand what is at stake."

"This isn't complicated. You'll do anything to get power. Even joining with the Reapers!"

"You've seen the visions from the beacons. You, of all people, should understand what the Reapers are capable of. They cannot be stopped. Do not mire yourself in pointless revolt. Do not sacrifice everything for petty freedoms. The Protheans tried to fight, and they were utterly destroyed. An entire race wiped out. But what if they _had _bowed before the Reapers? Would the Protheans still exist? Is submission not preferable to extinction?"

"Do you honestly believe those _machines _will let us live?"

When Saren mentioned not talking to the Council about the Reapers and Sovereign, Garrus reasoned that if they didn't believe Shepard's word why would they listen to Saren. Then again, they had doubted her action and word since the beginning. He was glad, however, when they made her a Spectre. He had total confidence in her. She would be a better Spectre than Saren ever was.

Meanwhile, Elena wished that Saren could hear himself talk right now. No matter how he put it, allying with the Reapers meant ever being would just be a_ tool_. She had to shake her head at him. He foolishly thought that a research facility could protect him from being manipulated by Soveriegn.

"Saren, you are just like every poor bastard in this place. A tool to be used and discarded."

"I've analyzed the effects of indoctrination. The more control Soveriegn exerts, the less capable the subject becomes. That is my saving grace."

_Did he just say 'saving grace'? _Elena thought. _Reaper and 'saving grace' do _not _belong in the same sentence._

"...My mind is still my own...for now."

_'For now' are key words, _she thought. _Saren should really hear himself talk. To him, joining the Reapers is salvation, which is not. However, he does admit that joining the Reapers means that all organic life would become slaves. I would rather die fighting than bend-over-backwards for those killing machines. _"Saren, can't you get it through your thick skull that you are already under Sovereign's power!"

"No! Soveriegn needs me. If I find the Conduit, I've been promised a reprieve from the inevitable. This is my only hope."

For a quick moment, Elena thought she heard pain or fright in his voice. "Can't you see that you are just a tool to Soveriegn? In the end, it'll discard you just like it'll discard everyone else."

"Do you think you can sway me, Shepard?"

_No, she is trying to knock some sense into you, _Garrus thought.

"Sovereign is a machine. It thinks like a machine. If I can prove my worth, I become a source worth maintaining. There is no other logical conclusion."

"You were a Spectre! You swore to defend the galaxy. But you broke that vow to save your own sorry ass!"

"I'm not doing this for myself. Don't you see? Sovereign_ will _succeed. It's inevitable. My _way _is the _only _way any of us will survive. I'm forging an alliance between us and the Reapers-organics and machines. In doing so, I will save more lives than have ever existed. But you would undo my work. You would-" A sniper rifle round suddenly hit him from the side. He jerked his head to see Garrus aiming his sniper rifle at him.

"I've heard enough of your lip, _Spectre," _he said, spitting the word 'Spectre' out.

Saren charged up a biotic attack. Elena sprinted up from her hiding spot. When Saren fired his biotic at Garrus, she tackled him in order to shove him out of the way.

"Garrus, what the hell were you thinking?" Elena snapped.

"'There wasn't time to think. I just reacted'," he said quoting himself after Shepard had helped him save Dr. Michel.

She scowled at him, but her expression soon softened. Then she hugged him tightly. "Don't do that again," she said softly. Then she got up and sprinted out of cover.

For a second, Garrus basked in the aftermath of her brief touch. Then he got up off the ground and joined Shepard and Wrex's fight against Saren who was back on his hover board.

Garrus used his electronics to overload Saren's shield. As soon as his shields were down, Wrex used warp. Elena fired her assault rifle at him. Saren fired his weapon at Wrex who put up his shields just in time. Seeing as firing at the krogan was useless, he fired at Elena. Garrus dashed toward her and, when Saren fired, he took the bullet.

"Garrus!" she cried. She kneeled down to check while Wrex kept Saren occupied.

"I'm fine," he moaned. "He only shot my leg."

Elena tightened her fist. "Don't scare me like that."

"Sorry." He moaned as he tried to move his leg. "Don't worry about me. Go after Saren."

"I...I..." She turned her head when she saw Wrex getting knocked back by Saren's biotics. The sight of Saren hurting everyone she cared for pissed her off. She slammed her fist on the ground before standing up.

Saren approached the downed krogan as he charged his attack.

"Hey Saren!" Elena shouted. "You son of bitch! Leave my squad alone." She fired her rifle.

Saren jerked around to engage her. When he glowed blue, he swept his arm out, knocking her down with his biotics. Then he angrily tossed his weapon aside. Elena looked around to see her squad trying to get up. Before she knew it, Saren grabbed her by the neck, sweeping her up off the ground. She now hung beyond the tower's edge.

As he continued his attempt to stand up, Garrus saw Shepard in danger.

"Shepard," he gasped.

Elena struggled to get out of Saren's grasp, but his grip tightened. Things were getting blurry when the building's alarm went off. The alarm had distracted him thereby loosening his grip on her neck. She tightened her hand into a fist. Then she delivered a blow to his face when he had turned his head around to her. The blow caused him to let go of her. Luckily, she didn't fall off the edge. Saren got back onto his hover board as Elena retrieved her pistol and aimed it at him.

Each exchanged a glare before they directed their attention elsewhere.

Elena put her pistol away as the _Normandy _flew over them. Then she picked up her rifle she had dropped when Saren picked her up by the neck. She ran toward Wrex to see if he was all right. No surprise, he was. He may be a little sore, but he was krogan who were known to be robust. A moan made her heart drop.

"Garrus," she gasped. "Wrex! Help me with Garrus." When she found him, she took his arm and wrapped it around her shoulders. "You didn't have to take that bullet for me, Garrus. You know that."

He chuckled. "And risk losing our commanding officer, I don't think so ma'am."

"Garrus..." she whispered.

"A few slabs of med-gel and the turian should be fine," Wrex said as he took Garrus' other arm.

"I'm not too worried." She looked at Garrus. "Should I?"

Garrus shook his head. Then Elena and Wrex helped Garrus back onto the ship.

Before meeting the rest of the crew in the debriefing room, Elena took Garrus to the med-bay. He had protested the whole way there, but she simply ignored him. Once he was settled in, she made her way to the room. When she arrived, she took a seat.

"I...I can't believe Ash didn't make it," Kaidan said. "How could we just leave her down there?"

"Williams knew the risk going in. She gave her life to save the rest of us."

"But why me? Why not her?"

"It wasn't your call, Alenko. I had to chose. I chose you."

"But if I had simply done my job, you wouldn't have had to make that call."

"It wasn't your fault. It wasn't my fault. The one to blame here is Saren."

"Yes ma'am. I-We'll get it done."

"Commander?" Liara said. "Excuse me for interrupting, but I have an idea. I think the beacon you found in Saren's base is similar to the one you found on Eden Prime. It may have filled the missing pieces of your vision. I might be able to help you put all the pieces together."

In truth, Elena really didn't like joining minds with Liara. It wasn't Liara herself, it was the fact that they seemed to enhance the intenseness and vividness of the her nightmares. Because of that, she hadn't gotten much sleep. Regardless, she would still do it due to its significance.

"Go ahead, Liara."

Elena and Liara walked toward each other until they were only a few inches away from one another.

"Relax, Commander," Liara said.

Elena closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Embrace eternity!"

The recognizable images flashed in Elena's mind. They were clearer and made more sense now that she understood what they represented. The story they told. The last image, which was Sovereign or simply a Reaper, caused her to have a small adrenaline rush. She opened her eyes when she heard Liara speak, exhaustion clear in her voice.

"Incredible. I...I never thought the images would be so...intense. I need a moment to collect myself."

"Did the vision make any sense to you?" Elena asked.

"It's a distress call. A message sent out across the Prothean Empire. A warning against the Reapers, but it came too late."

"What about the Conduit?"

"There were other images. Locations. Places I recognized from my research..." Liara thought about all the places she had come across during her researching of the Protheans. Suddenly, the images she had seen in the vision and the places she came across in her research had 'created' a match. "Ilos! The Conduit is on Ilos! That is why Saren needed to find the Mu Relay. It is the only way to get to Ilos."

"We need to get to Ilos," Elena said.

"Forget it," Tali said. "The Mu Relay's inside the Terminus System. Neither Alliance ships nor Spectres are welcomed there."

"The Conduit is on Ilos. That's where Saren's headed. I'll be there to give him and his geth buddies a warm welcome."

"But Saren will have his entire fleet orbiting Ilos. You won't make it down to the surface without reinforcements. You must alert the Council. We need a fleet to-ohh..." Liara sighed. "I'm sorry. The joining is...exhausting. I should go to the medical bay and lie down for a moment."

Elena nodded. "We're done here. Crew dismissed."

"Commander, there's a comm. buoy nearby," Joker said over the room's comm. speakers "I can link us in if you want to report back to the Citadel Council. You know, to warn them about Sovereign."

She took a deep breath. She already had an idea what the Council was going to say. But maybe they would change their minds and finally take her word for it. Only one way to find out...

"Set the link up, Joker. They need to know."

"Patching it through."

"Commander Shepard. I'm pleased to see your mission on Virmire was a success," the Asari Councilor said.

_At a cost, _Elena thought as she thought of Ashley.

"Saren is formidable enough without an army of krogan serving under him," the Turian Councilor said.

"The krogan would've served Soveriegn," Elena said. "A Reaper"

"Yes...," the Salarian Councilor began.

_Oh, you've got to be kidding me, _she thought, her blood beginning to boil.

"...We saw mention of this on your report. Sovereign. A sentient machine. A true artificial intelligence. This news is quite alarming...if it turns out to be accurate."

_No way... _"Soveriegn is real! The Reapers are real! Saren even admitted it."

"He's playing you, Shepard!" the Turian Councilor said. "Saren still has contacts on the Citadel. He probably saw your earlier reports. The ones talking about your vision. And the Reapers."

_...no way... _

"It's highly possible Saren is using false information to throw you off balance," the Salarian Councilor said. "Our own intelligence has never turned up any corroborating information."

_...no freakin way! _"I tried to warn you about Saren! You didn't believe then and look how that turned out."

"I believe you humans have a saying: 'Even a broken clock is right twice a day.'"

_Oh. That's. It. _She glared at the turian. "Screw you, Councilor."

"Maybe we were wrong about you, Shepard. Maybe humans are-"

"Aw, looks like we lost the signal, Joker."

"Understood, Commander," Joker said before disconnecting the Council.

For a moment, Elena simply stood there with both of her hands clenched into fists. Each shook with agitation. She jerked around and headed out of the room. She slowed to a halt as she got closer to the door. Then she slammed her fist against the wall.

"Shepard?"

Elena looked up to see Garrus.

"Oh, Garrus" she said, running her free hand over her face, "I didn't hear you come in."

"Yes. It seems that I missed the mission's debriefing."

"Um..." She took a deep breath to get rid of her anger as well as calm down. She stood up straight before speaking. "We were able to find the Conduit's location. It's on Ilos. We're going back to the Citadel to maybe get some reinforcements from the Council." Her anger returned when she thought about the Council.

Garrus took notice. "Are you all right?"

Elena simply looked at him. She slowly walked up to him. Then she put her hand on the side of his face.

Garrus' heart began to race. He tried to control his breathing.

"Garrus...please excuse me...I...I need to take care of some things." She then put her hand down and walked out of the room without another word.

After talking to the crew, especially Kaidan, Wrex, and Kirrahe, Elena went to _Normandy's _Galaxy Map to plot a course to the Citadel. Suddenly, Joker's voice was heard over the comm.

"I forwarded the mission update to the Citadel, Commander. We got conformation on those reinforcements. Ambassador Udina wants us to report back to the Citadel. The Council is massing a joint-species fleet to deal with Saren and his geth."

_What a freakin miracle, the Council is actually stepping up, _she thought. "It took them long enough. Back to the Citadel, Joker! I want the _Normandy _at the head of that fleet!"

"Yes, ma'am!"

As she walked up the stairs that would take her to the Council, Elena remained in control of her emotions. She not only had to look presentable in front of her two crew members-Kaidan and Tali-but also to the ambassador. When she stood next to the ambassador, she quietly took a deep breath.

"Good job, Shepard," Udina said. "Thanks to you, the Council is finally taking real action against Saren!"

"The ambassador is correct," the Asari Councilor said. "If Saren is foolish enough to attack the Citadel-as you believe-we will be ready for him."

"Patrols are stationed at every mass relay linking Citadel space to the Terminus System," the Turian Councilor said, pride and confidence plain in his voice.

_The Citadel? What about Ilos? _Elena thought. "But Saren is on Ilos looking for the Conduit right now! What are you doing about that?"

"Ilos is only accessible through the Mu Relay, deep inside the Terminus System, Commander. If we send a fleet in there, the only possible outcome is full-scale war," the Salarian Councilor explained.

"However, _Councilor_, one ship going into the Terminus Systems won't start a war," Elena retorted. "I can be discreet."

"You detonated a nuclear device on Virmire," the Turian Councilor snapped back. "I wouldn't call that discreet!"

_I would _so _like to see his ass out on the front lines, _Elena thought. _With the way the Council kisses each other's asses, they would've had no problem with _him _doing it._ "If Saren finds the Conduit, we're all screwed! We _have _to go to Ilos!"

"Ambassador Udina, I get the sense Commander Shepard isn't willing to let this go."

Udina scowled at the Commander. "There are serious political implications here, Shepard. Humanity's made great gains thanks to you. But you're becoming more trouble than you're worth."

"_You bastard!_" Kaidan shouted. "You're selling us out!"

Elena's heart drop as her blood boiled again.

"It's just politics, Commander," Udina said with an almost cocky tone and attitude. "You've done your job, now let me do mine. We've locked down all the _Normandy_'s primary systems. Until further notice, you're grounded."

"Nobody stabs me in the back Udina!" she said stabbing her finger at him. "_Nobody!"_

"I think it's time for you and your team to leave, Commander. This no longer concerns you..."

_The hell it doesn't! _she wanted to shout.

"...The Council can handle this. With my help, of course."

_Fools! _she thought while walking away. _All of you!_

When Elena returned to the _Normandy_, she explained to the crew to not worry about it and enjoy a little down time at the Citadel. When Joker had noticed something unusual about the Commander, he asked if she was okay. She told him everything was fine. Then she went to her quarters to finish some paperwork. Her pity party began soon after.

She locked herself in her quarters. She had been in there for almost an hour. But after all that had happened, she simply wanted to be alone. She had chosen to save Kaidan, but she had lost a very good and loyal soldier in the process. Ambassador Udina had backstabbed her when he had the _Normandy _grounded. And after all she'd done, the Council still didn't believe her when she warned them about the Reapers. It just wasn't fair. She felt that her whole world was coming apart and falling down on her.

She sighed as she sat on the edge of her bed. She ran her fingers through her hair before covering her face with them. She simply thought about her current situation and how to get back in the game. She then heard someone at her door.

"Shepard?"

She recognized the voice. "Garrus?"

"I just want to come and see if you are all right."

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure? If you want to talk about it, you can always come to me."

"Thanks, Garrus, but I just need some time alone."

"But-"

"Please...just leave me alone."

Outside her door, Garrus sighed and, reluctantly, complied. "Yes ma'am. I'll be down in engineering if you need anything."

Inside her room, Elena sighed and sat up to allow only a few tears to spill out. What was she doing? She pushed away the one person-turian-she cared about most. For a moment, she stopped thinking about the bad things that happened and, instead, altered them toward Garrus. She remembered when her feelings for him first emerged. It was when she met him in the Citadel Tower.

_"Commander Shepard. __Garrus Vakarian. I was the officer in charge of the C-sec investigation into Saren."_

_"Sounded like you really want to bring him down."_

_"I don't trust him. Something about him rubs me the wrong way. But he's a Spectre everything he touches is classified. I couldn't find any hard evidence."_

_"I think the Council is ready for us, Commander," Kaidan said._

_"Good luck, Shepard. Maybe they'll listen to you."_

_"Thanks," she said. _

_Garrus bowed his head in respect. She proceeded to the Tower when she accidently bumped into him. Time seemed to slow down for her. He looked into her eyes and then..._

A smile appeared on her face when she thought about the look he had gave her with his deep, intense blue-gray eyes. They were so beautiful. His graceful and sturdy build was a turn on for her. She admitted that she was excited when he became a part of her crew. When she talked to him, she noticed that he wanted to get things done fast. She giggled when she remembered Harkin calling him a 'hot head.' Then tears fell down again.

Garrus had had her back ever since the beginning. He was one of her most loyal and courteous crew members. She treated every crew member with equal respect and attention, but Garrus was an exception. There was something about him that kept drawing her to him. Her heart had fluttered when he had confessed his feelings for her.

She wiping her tears away and ran her fingers through her hair once more. Then she got off her bed and headed down to engineering.

The elevator slowly opened. She looked up, seeing the entire engineering room completely empty...almost. She saw Garrus working on the Mako as he always had since she recruited him. She smiled and, with silent, careful steps, she walked to him. Once she was close, she wrapped her arms around his waist. Then she rested her head on his back.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

Garrus gently took hold of her arms and pulled them away from his waist, only to bring them back around when he turned around and faced her. "For what?"

She shrugged. "Just...I don't know...just-"

He put a finger to her mouth to close it. He shook his head. "Don't be."

She embraced him tightly and allowed her tears to fall.

"It's all right, Shepard. Everything is going to be fine."

"Why do I not feel that way than?"

"I wish I could tell you. All I know is that you'll get us through this, I believe in you."

She moaned and rested her head on his chest. Then she carefully hit his chest with her fist. "Why won't they listen to me, Garrus? After _everything_ I've done, they still have their heads up their asses."

"I know they do," he said with a quiet chuckle. "They're stubborn beings who will never change, no matter how hard anyone tries to persuade or push them. To me, the smartest move they've ever made was making you a Spectre. You did exactly as they asked and more."

She smiled. "You are too kind."

"Just stating the facts."

For a long, quiet moment, they held each other closely in their embrace. The thought of letting go never crossed their minds. They cherished every second that passed by them. Eventually, Elena sighed and slowly, but only slightly released Garrus. They looked at each other, but the gaze held more meaning than it appeared. They weren't so much looking into each other's eyes, more like they were looking into each other's souls. Garrus smiled and leaned closer to her as she leaned closer to him. They were only a few inches away from each other's mouths when Joker interrupted.

"Sorry to interrupt, Commander, I got a message from Captain Anderson," he said over the ship's speakers.

Elena moaned and let her head fall down on Garrus' chest.

"Damn it!" she cursed quietly.

Garrus chuckled.

"What did he want?" she asked, embracing Garrus.

"He said to meet him at Flux. The club in the Upper Wards."

"Well, I guess you better get going," Garrus said.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Just because I have to leave, doesn't mean I'm leaving you here." She walked away while taking hold of his hand and taking him to the elevator.

While on their way to meet Captain Anderson at Flux, Shepard and Garrus ran into Wrex. He asked where they were going. She explained that they were going to meet Captain Anderson. He came along with them because he was getting bored. Shepard had to laugh because, she guessed, he had gotten so used to the fighting and the action of hunting Saren that the Citadel seemed too quiet and boring for him. Soon after, they arrived at Flux.

Shepard scanned the bar for the captain. She found him sitting at a table near the far end of the room. She walked toward him and then she took a seat.

"I'm glad you made it, Shepard," Anderson said.

"_Normandy_'s been grounded," Shepard explained.

Anderson's expression on his face grew soft. "I know, I'm sorry. I wanted to warn you, but there was no way to get a message to you before you docked. Shepard, I know you're pissed right now, but you can't give up. They think it's over, but we both know it's not. You _have _to go to Ilos. You _have _to stop Saren from using the Conduit."

"There's just one problem with that. There's only one ship that can get me in the Terminus System undetected and she's grounded."

"Citadel control locked down all the _Normandy's _systems. But if we override the Ambassador's orders, we can get the _Normandy _back online. You can be in the Terminus System before anyone knows you're gone."

"If we steal the _Normandy_, you're the one left holding the bag."

"And if Saren finds and uses the Conduit, life as we know it is over. The Reapers will destroy us, humans, asari, everybody, you're the only one who can stop him. So I'll do whatever I can to help you get off this station."

"But stealing the _Normandy _is mutiny. What if the crew won't help me?"

"The _Normandy _is your ship now. Her crew will follow you to the ends of the galaxy. We both know that."

Shepard thought about her crew and their loyalty to her. They had been faithful to her this far. Everyone was devoted to her, especially one certain turian. A thrill of excitement and content flowed through her body. She looked back at Garrus and Wrex. They both nodded to her, but Garrus smiled while nodding his head. She smiled and nodded her head, turning her attention back to the captain.

"I won't forget this, Captain. I promise."

Anderson smiled. "All right. I can unlock the _Normandy _in one of the Citadel's control centers. You'll only have a few minutes before any one realizes what happened."

"That's a restricted area patrolled by armed guards," Garrus said, unexpectedly giving voice to Shepard's thoughts. "How are you going to get in?"

"Leave that to me. Just make sure you're in the _Normandy _when her systems come back online."

"No, Captain," she said. "You're going to get yourself killed. I'm not going to have you die just to save my ass. There has to be another way."

"Udina issued the lockdown order. If I can hack into the computer in his office, maybe I can override it."

"He's not going to let walk into his office and use his computer," Wrex said.

"Hopefully, he's not."

"But what if he is in there?" Shepard asked.

"I'll just think of something."

"The Ambassador won't let this slide, Captain," Garrus said. "You'll be charged with treason, a capital offense."

"He has a point, Captain," Shepard said.

"At this point, we don't have a lot options right now. I either break into the Ambassador's office to use his computer or I take my chances will the patrol in Citadel control."

Shepard pondered and examined every bit of information involved in the conversation. Then she got up from her seat, making a decision.

"You'll have a better chance with the Ambassador's computer. Plus, it is less dangerous."

"I was hoping you would say that. He made this _personal_. You ready to get the hell off this station, Commander?"

A devilish smile appeared on her face. "Let's do it."

"I'll take care of the lockdown. You get down to the _N_o_rmandy_ and tell Joker to stand-by."

Elena turned to her Garrus and Wrex. "Let's go."

They nodded and followed her lead back to the _Normandy. _As they were walking back, she contacted Joker.

"Joker, tell everyone to get their asses back to the _Normandy_ now. There's been a change in plans."

Elena was anxious and jumpy ever since she had returned to the ship. Everyone had made it back in a quick amount of time. Now, all she had to do was wait for the red light on the _Normandy_'s console to turn green.

_Come on, Captain, _she thought. For her, the tension of waiting was so thick, it could probably be cut with a knife. She saw Joker take a look at her from his seat. She simply looked at him before returning her gaze back to the red light. Then it happened-the red light turned green. She tapped Joker's shoulder. "Let's go. Get us out of here, Joker. Now!"

Once the _Normandy _was released, Joker sped the ship out of the docking bay, far beyond the Citadel, and headed for Ilos to stop Saren once and for all.


	8. Ilos

**VIII**

Elena didn't understand why she was still on edge. The Citadel hadn't sent any ships after them; much to Joker's disappointment. They were pretty much in the clear. Now they were headed to Ilos to stop Saren. She then realized _that_'s the reason why she was still feeling uptight. If they failed to stop Saren...scenarios from all ends of the spectrum filled her head, giving her a headache.

She sighed as she got up from her desk chair and slouched against a wall near her bed. It had been a very long and tiring journey. The whole time she had always been busy with _something_. Just thinking about all the assignments Admiral Hackett had requested her to complete made her eyes heavy and her bones ache. She ran her hands over her face before covering it with them. For a moment, things were quiet. The only sound she heard was the low hum of the _Normandy_'s engines.

The soft sound was like a lullaby to her. She closed her eyes when her door hissed open. She was lost in her own thoughts that she didn't hear Garrus come in until he spoke.

"Are you all right, Shepard?" he asked.

She jerked up. "Oh, Garrus, I didn't expect to see you."

He saw her face turn a bright, warm red color. He chuckled. "Sorry. I didn't mean to scary you."

_Calm down, Elena_, she thought as she felt her heart beat against her chest. _Calm down._ She leveled her posture while taking a deep breath. She shook her head before looking at him. She opened her mouth to speak when she saw what Garrus was wearing. He was not in his armor, instead he wore a dark blue tunic and pants. The tunic had white outlines on the sides while the pants were plain dark blue.

She smiled mischievously. Leaning against the wall once more, she crossed her arms.

"What's your intention, Mr. Vakarian?" she said while keeping her eyes on his outfit.

Garrus followed her gaze before looking at his outfit. He was unsure whether his voice caught in his throat or he simply didn't know what to say. He could feel the air thickening and getting heavier as the silence between them prolonged. He finally said the first thing that came into his head.

"You like?"

She laughed as she walked over to him. "I do." She reached up and stroked the rim of his tunic. Slithering her hands down to his chest, she felt his fast heart rate.

When she looked at him, Garrus saw her blue eyes shimmer with emotion. He slowly placed his talons on her shoulders. Then he glided them down to her hips. He had felt her shiver under his gentle, soothing touch. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close.

Resting his forehead on hers, he breathed, "You're so beautiful, Shepard." He hugged her tightly, never wanting to let go. Her sweet scent filled his nose. He began to gently stroke her back, hearing a content sigh from her. He had waited for this moment since he laid eyes on her. They were both alone and no one would interrupt his time with her. And yet...something was holding him back, preventing him from giving himself fully to her.

Elena's blood rushed to her face again, coloring her skin. The warmth of his body gave her a comforting and secure feeling. She felt his warm breath touch her skin. The unique aroma of his metallic skin tickled her senses when they entered her nose. In his presence, all of Elena's worries had melted away. He made her feel like she could take on the _whole _galaxy. But now...all she wanted to do was be with him.

When they released each other and looked into one another's eyes, Elena closed her eyes and reached up to kiss him. Garrus simply stared at her. Up close, he gazed at the traits of her face. Despite the signs of stress and fatigue, she was still beautiful. Elena opened her eyes, wondering why her lips hadn't felt his.

"What's wrong?"

He sighed. "Shepard..." He stroked her cheek. "Shepard...I...don't know if we can do this."

Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean?"

He rubbed the back of his neck. "There are certain...risks of having a relationship with me." He took both of her hands. "I just don't want to hurt you."

"Hurt me?"

"It wouldn't be intentional. I just..." He looked away as if ashamed to face her. "I care about you too much to risk hurting you."

Elena considered his words. She looked down at their joined hands before guiding his head toward her. "We may never get this chance again, Garrus."

He clenched her hand that was on the side of his face while closing his eyes. His eyes immediately opened when he felt her lips to his.

Even though Elena only felt the pressure of his mouth against her own, she was happy. She was even happier when he did not pull away. She opened her eyes to stare at his handsome face.

While they kissed, they stared into each other's eyes. Garrus noted the sparkle he adored so much was in her gaze. When they parted, Elena took Garrus' talon with one of her hands and guided him to the bed. Once they were both on, Garrus moved on top of her. Her body tingled. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, letting her be simply swept away. Garrus leaned in and pressed his mouth against hers.

Elena's heart bounced a little when she felt Garrus' tongue slip into in her mouth.

_Oh! _she thought as their tongues began to dance.

Garrus couldn't hardly believe how sweet she tasted. He was about to get engrossed in her sweet flavor when his instincts kicked in. He didn't want to ruin this moment with her. To prevent himself from accidently hurting her, he worked his way from her lips down to her neck. She inhaled and exhaled deeply as she felt his touch on her neck. With her eyes still closed, her hands moved to the bottom of his tunic and began to lift it up.

She giggled when she felt his talon grab her wrists. He stopped kissing her in order to look at her in the eye.

"Shepard..." he said with a serious, yet quiet voice.

Smiling, she shrugged. "What?"

"Not yet."

She exasperated playfully. "Oh fine. Have it your way."

Garrus had to smile and laugh at her playful personality. He pinned her hands down on the bed and continued to kiss her neck. Elena giggled when she heard a deep rumble from Garrus' chest. While kissing her neck, he felt something hard against her skin. He stopped. Freeing one of his talons, he reached down her shirt, but Shepard stopped him. Her free hand had wrapped around his wrist this time. He looked to see a blank expression on her face. He backed up when she sat up. He saw her reach down her shirt and lift out a piece of metal linked to a metal chain.

Elena took off her sister's dog tag and placed it on a night stand near her bed. Garrus looked at the object curiously. It seemed familiar to him. He had seen some human C-sec officers put them on and wear them. He couldn't remember what they were called and why humans wore them.

"What's that?" he asked.

She glanced at the dog tag before answering him. "That's my sister's dog tag."

"Why do humans wear them?"

"To commemorate loved ones who have died."

Garrus' heart dropped. He felt like an idiot by bring up such a personal matter. "I'm sorry, Shepard. I didn't mean to-"

"It's okay. You were simply curious." Elena saw Garrus lower his head. "My sister died on Mindoir while protecting the colonists from batarian slavers."

He remained silent.

"We were really close. That's why my parents entrusted me with it. She was not only my sister...but my only friend." She saw Garrus simply staring at the dog tag. She took his head with her hands and moved it so that he was looking at her. "So you better be good." She smiled. "Because she'll be watching you." Then she kissed him as she dragged him down.

Once both were lying down, she ceased kissing him.

He smiled. "She has nothing to worry about. I could never, ever hurt you, Shepard." He cupped her head with his talons once more and kissed her lips.

A few tears of joy and sadness ran down her cheeks as she melted into his kiss.

* * *

"Five minutes ETA to the Mu Relay," Joker's voice rang over the speakers.

"Thanks, Joker," she said without opening her eyes. Instead of getting up, she cuddled up against Garrus who had cradled her to sleep.

He chuckled. "Come on, Shepard. Duty calls."

She sat up and stretched before looking at Garrus. "Joker said five minutes, right?"

He nodded.

She wrapped her arms around his neck. "That's enough time for another round."

"Sounds tempting, but how about we stop Saren from destroying the galaxy first?"

"Sounds good to me. Then you will be all mine," she said, gently rubbing her nose against his.

* * *

_"Never a dull moment with you, Shepard." _Elena thought, remembering what Wrex had said to her during one of their conversations. He was dead on.

The start of the final assault to stop Saren was exciting. Not only did she get a chance to spend time with Garrus before the mission started; she and her team-Garrus and Wrex- skydived out of the _Normandy _in the Mako in order to land close enough to Saren. Unfortunately, they weren't fast enough to get to him before two large doors blocked their way.

_Of course...there is always _something, Elena sighed. _Shocker._

"We have to get inside this bunker before Saren finds the Conduit," Garrus said with urgency. "There is no way we are getting pass this door with brute force."

"Saren found a way to open it," Wrex said. "There has got to some kind of security override somewhere in this complex."

"We'll have to find some way to get it up and running again."

"Agreed," Shepard said. She turned around to examine her team.

Wrex. The krogan mercenary and one of the last krogan battlemasters. He had been hired by the Shadow Broker to kill Fist-the owner of Chora's Den. That is how she met him. She had to laugh at how a C-sec officer tired to intimidate the krogan with a threat of arrest. He was a tough fighter and a loyal friend. Despite the confrontation on Virmire, she trusted him. When they were talking one time, he had told her that he was no hero, but deep down, Elena believed he was. He cared deeply for his people, whether he admitted it or not. She wished him the best.

Now Garrus. She blushed. He was an amazing turian, stubborn and hot-headed at times, but nonetheless amazing. When they first met in the Citadel Tower, she would have never dreamed they would become so close. Doubt never crossed her mind when she brought him along missions. He was skilled with a rifle. Plus, he was polite to all the members of the crew even Wrex...to an extent. Words could never truly describe the way she felt about him. She would walk through hell and back for him. She was glad he was by her side to finish this fight.

She nodded and got her assault rifle out. "Let's kick some geth ass."

Garrus got out his assault rifle as well. "Right behind you, Shepard."

Wrex took out his shotgun. "Let's go."

* * *

Elena, Garrus, and Wrex fought hard while keeping an eye out for some kind of control room that might open the bunker Saren escaped in.

They took an elevator down. When the doors opened, they entered a hallway that was coated in dried vines and vegetation. Gazing ahead, Elena spotted an elevated room with windowpanes going across the front.

"Looks like a control room, doesn't it?" she thought out loud.

Both Garrus and Wrex looked up at the room she indicted.

"Sure does," Garrus said.

"Watch it!" Wrex shouted, lifting his shotgun. "We need to demolish some geth first."

Elena aimed her assault rifle and charged with Wrex by her side. Garrus stood back to give them covering fire with his sniper.

"Take out the Prime and Destroyer first and then go for the smaller bastards," she ordered. She didn't need to hear their response because she saw Wrex instantly firing at the Prime while Garrus fired at the Destroyer. When Garrus had taken the Destroyer's shields, Shepard threw a grenade. It evaded it only to have its flashlight head filled with plasma from her rifle.

A geth trooper snuck up behind her. It lifted its weapon up to her head. As she turned around, it began to pull back the trigger.

"Shepard!" Garrus yelled, seeing the event unfold through his sniper scope.

The geth trooper was about to take her out when Wrex pushed it away using his biotics. He lifted it into the air when it hit the wall. To finish it off, Garrus shot it through its chest. Once the coast was clear, Garrus ran up to Elena.

"Are you all right?" he asked worry clear in his voice.

"Calm down, Vakarian," Wrex said. "Shepard's fine."

Garrus scowled at Wrex before looking at Shepard who smiled at him.

"Thanks for your concern, Garrus," she said. "I'm fine."

Garrus smiled and nodded.

"Come on," she said gesturing her head toward the elevated room.

* * *

Elena walked up the holographic panel and typed in a few keys. _Hopefully this will open the bunker's doors for us._

"Let's go!" Wrex said eagerly. "I want that crooked turian's head."

"Now, _you_ need to calm down, Wrex," Garrus said. "I bet we still need to get through lots more geth in order to get to him."

"I don't mind. Killing those synthetic puppets of his is fun anyway."

"I understand how you feel, Wrex," Elena said turning to them. "But we need to be careful. There is a chance Saren might've placed traps inside the bunker."

"We'll take our chances," Wrex said.

Elena laughed as she shook her head. She walked forward when Garrus lifted his hand to stop her.

"Wait. Something's happening," he said.

Shepard raised her eyebrow and turned around. The panel she had been working on not too long ago suddenly had a bizarre shaped hologram floating above it. The voice that came over the hologram talked about "invading fleets" and "no escape." She assumed it was a warning about the Reapers.

"It must be some kind message...but I don't recognize the language," Wrex said.

_He can't understand it, _she thought. _Strange that I can._

"It must be in Prothean," Garrus said possibly clarifying why the message was incomprehensible. "This message must be 50,000 years old or more."

"The message is a bit unclear, but I can understand some bits and pieces. I think it's the Protheans warning about the invasion of the Reapers."

"Amazing! The Cipher must've have given you the ability to understand the Prothean language."

"It's possible." She turned her attention back to the hologram to see if you could get anything out of it. Sadly, she was unable to.

"Can you get anything else from it?" Wrex asked.

"Nothing useful. We should go. We need to keep our minds focused on Saren."

"We're right behind you, Commander," Garrus said winking.

Elena saw this and smiled.


End file.
